SHGS : Stars in my hands like grains of sand
by daemon darklighter
Summary: Somewhere in the Wild Regions of space there is a planet with more Force sensitives than in all the star system put together. What will happen when the ancient mysticism of these people clashes with the high technology of a galaxy sundered? Is it possible that a blond angelic soul, destined for the Light, could fall to the Dark? Whose fists would grasp the endless grains? (N/H-S/S)
1. Chapter 1: The Tenth of October

**Stars in my hands like grains of sand**

**Disclaimer: I do not own, or profit from Naruto or Star Wars and all associated media.**

**A/N**

"Now this looks like a nice community…"

**- Darklighter**

"_Thoughts"_

"Speech"

"_**Abnormal sentient thoughts"**_

"**Abnormal sentient speech"**

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><p><strong>Prologue:<strong>

**Star-ship id: The Libertine-ISV165**

**Location: ****Galactic West of the Known Galaxy**

**Nearest planet status and navigational data: Unknown; N/A**

**Year: 745 ABY**

**Captain's logs: Entry 6546**

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><p>"I am Deimus, and I am the dark's only Master. My birth coincided with the death of my parent at the hands of Imperial Executors, however do not think that I ever met, or loved my parent. I only know of that renowned Jedi Master because of the various accounts of his actions and accomplishments I have unwillingly consumed over the years.<p>

"In those days, the now defunct New Republic was flexing its muscles after the battle at Yavin, and the Imperials had responded against force sensitives and normal sentients with a fury born of desperation and imminent defeat.

"I suppose that if I had been raised among my people I would be considered to be only marginally an adult. But I believe my long years in tune with the force and cosmos have wizened me beyond my years. I belong to an ancient, rare, and proud race - the Neti. The bark like appearance of my skin, my need to photosynthesize for nurture, and my innate shape shifting abilities were all evolved amongst the trees of the planet Myrkr, the home of my ancestors.

"Although we are a long lived race we reproduce rarely, and in my particular case most likely never as I haven't ever laid eyes on another Neti. For this reason my people tended to remain close to the worlds they called their own, as their numbers had always been few. I was seeded from the ancient Ood Bnar seven hundred and thirty-five galactic years ago, and for a century I was more or less alone on Ossus. I laugh at the thought of his dead roots shriveling further at the realization that his only offspring is a Sith.

"For all I know one of only four Sith still living, although given the infinite reaches of the galaxy I traverse that is unlikely. To understand me - and why a being of hate, as your mythologies would have it, should share with you like such I should tell you the story of how I became a Sith. Yet I would rather tell you how I lost and found purpose.

"I lost my purpose when I came to realize, after centuries of conflict, that in the end the Sith order had prevailed. We had warred against the Jedi for millennia, and fractious squabbles between Galactic Republic and Sith, between the Empire and the New Republic, between the galaxy itself and the invasive Yuuzhan Vong was simply a by-product of the eternal feud between the light and dark sides of the force, between the weak and the strong.

"The cumulative attrition of all this death led to the end of civilization in my time.

"It was not the end we Sith had initially envisioned, not the transition to open and perfect rule by the strong over the weak that we had dreamed about, but the erosion of order itself. I have never been one to keep faith in lost dreams, and for two centuries I gained much pleasure from observing the steady decline of technology, and the spread of chaos. Increasingly the galaxy was segmented into small pockets as cultures lost the means to fund long distance travel on a consistent basis, and I have no doubt that this aspect of the dissolution of order was a result of the extinction of many of the galaxy's premier ship building races such as the Fondorians and Calamari.

"Yet this enjoyment was not purpose but simply bloated and torpid satisfaction, and I soon tired of it and eventually took on three disciples. Darth Osvaldus, a Zabrak with pale skin and purple face markings. He is my first student, chosen for his ambition - and under my guidance he has become well versed in Sith sorcery, which he has often used to masterfully wreak torment on my occasional enemies. Already I can sense in him the stirring calls of my eventual betrayal, which I eagerly await.

"Darth Xanthé, the Twi'leck who even now stalks the space before my meditation chamber, her supple and delicate lekku lashing wildly from within the bright yellow bindings she has fixed over them so tightly as to cause her constant pain. She does not truly comprehend the ancient ways of the Sith and is used by her passions because she does not rule them.

"Finally there is also Mara Venton. She comes from a race that is as plentiful in the galaxy as the rodents they resemble - humans - but she, she is a budding young apprentice of the dark side. Although she is not yet worthy to be named Darth, I will eventually bestow on her the honored name of one of our past's greatest mistresses. Traya.

"I should never have forgotten that as a rule, contentment is anathema to the Sith, and even now as I recline in my meditation chamber with my roots dug firmly into the soil beneath, the seething anger I feel at my failure to detect the subtle whisper in the force that surely preceded my current predicament threatens to destroy my ship and put an end to this dictation for all eternity.

"The improbable malfunction of my vessel's navigational computer could have thrown us into the heart of a sun. Instead I find myself surveying statistical data on a world positively latent with force sensitives who have somehow, impossibly, created a language of hand symbols that manipulate sentient brain waves to control the force."

End Captain's Log.

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><p><strong>SHGS - Chapter One: The Tenth of October<strong>

**Terra**

**Year: 747 ABY**

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><p>Xanthé snarled, her Lekku writhing in time to the jumble of emotions that coursed through her veins. A grimace of unfettered hate etched itself in the lines of tension that adorned her face.<p>

She swung her crimson Lightsaber up and outwards in a diagonal swipe that she intended to slice her opponent into halves. However the man displayed the same prescient agility that she herself was blessed with, and her attack merely singed the trailing end of his long black coat - which was stylized with red clouds.

He did not stand to engage after he had evaded her blow, but leaped up into the higher boughs of the tree they battled upon. His passage stirred the fat rain drops that had settled on the bark and sent them tumbling in a cascading shower.

There were two of them in the black coats, and her mind raced with clarity of thought that belied her force enhanced rage as she weighed the heavy odds. She had not been hopelessly outmatched so far, but the vessel of one of the nine vast force presences her Master sought had since made good its escape as both parties seeking its capture attempted to destroy each other.

A klaxon thrill of alarm sounded in her head, and guided by the force she threw herself off of the branch she had balanced on for a second too long. The other warrior, the one with blue skin and a maw full of distinctive razor sharp teeth, had drifted from her awareness as she had engaged his black haired companion.

He was below her; she had failed to note the rapid sequence of hand symbols he had formed. Annoyance twanged in her breast. Two years on this forsaken backwater and she was still making such errors.

Cupping his lips with his hands the shark-man sent large bullets of water, formed into the likeness of ravenous shark heads, hurtling at her. His bent legs dag tracks into the sodden ground as their rigid muscles countered the force of his exhalations.

He tracked her as she engaged in a series of agile leaps and dodges, and his sharks uttered uncanny roars and crunches as their liquid teeth and forceful snouts broke through the moss covered flesh of the plant's boughs and trunk.

The torrent abated abruptly as he failed to strike her with his attack. Blue-skin began to twist his fingers in a different pattern of symbols; these were twists that Xanthé knew she could ill afford to allow him complete.

Wordlessly she thrust out the hooked fingers of her left hand in his direction, even as she completed one last evasive somersault. Streaming tendrils of sparking electricity powered by her rage and fear arced towards the figure below her on the ground.

As the force lightning met flesh a shudder ran through Xanthé's body. Her unique force talent gave her empathetic access to the being's torment.

She embraced the feeling as her own, recycling and mixing it in with her emotions as she built up a tremendous store of power, preparing to release the dark side of the force in a torrent of energy that would cause her lightning to melt the man's flesh and char his bones.

Just as she could no longer contain the power she directed all the energy into Blue-skin's form.

The tendrils of electricity that connected them became thick whipping cables that cast a harsh glare on her face as they locked his body in place and caused weeping lesions to appear on his blackening skin. His cells quickly atrophied drained of their water.

She barely had time to savour his demise before his black haired comrade blazed into existence within her guard. He stabbed for her throat with a sharp blade that materialized from his coat's sleeve.

She was still pouring lightning into the crisp form of his companion, and before she ended the technique some of the sparking threads from her off hand lashed the man's face; burning him. His sword she sheared at the hilt with an instinctive parry, but he had attacked from such an angle that the metal blade still drew a line down her neck and shoulder as it clattered past her and to the forest floor.

If the ease with which she had destroyed his weapon perturbed the man it did not show on his face, and had she not been a warrior herself she would have been convinced that the death of his comrade had not affected him in the slightest.

Despite her force abilities as a pre-cog she could barely keep pace with his attacks as he varied the striking patterns of his fists and feet, nor dodge the various projectiles he hurled at her in the fractional pauses between his blows. The man's red eyes seemed to bore into her soul as he adapted to the travails of facing a Lightsaber wielding foe at an unreal pace, constantly forcing her to use her blade to take out his metal throwing stars and knives, while having to backpedal away from the non-stop barrage of physical attacks he sent her way.

Abruptly he moved in very close and stabbed at her with one of the knives the people of this world favored, short blades with a broad leaf profile, an attack that should have been unavoidable.

But the force still guided her limbs, and in the fraction of a second before he had begun the motion the muscles in her hand had already flexed her Lightsaber into an effective guard. The energy blade pointed downwards to swipe out and obliterate the metal weapon.

The man's red eyes grew wide as she converted the block into a thrust, a killing blow which punched itself into his sternum. The hiss of the Lightsaber boiling his insides was incongruent with the clean, cauterized, wound that was left when she pulled out the blade. The light went out of the man's eyes as he toppled back slowly to fall off of the branch and towards the ground.

Xanthé smiled as post battle aches began to creep up on her, and she even began a thought process that would have led to her considering the lengths she would have to go to in order to track down the lava wielding 'Roshi,' who now knew that two separate and powerful groups were after his head, before she noticed the man's cadaver burst into a thousand black crows.

The birds spiraled into the air. They filled the battlefield with their incessant cawing. Some of their number settled on the corpse of the blue skinned, shark toothed, warrior. Involuntarily Xanthé's Lekku curled with fear, and the hilt of her Lightsaber became sodden with sweat from her palms.

Blue-skin slowly and deliberately clambered back into an "engage" position. He should have been dead, yet his baleful eyes locked on her. The skin around their sockets was charred and blackened.

The crows which had spiraled into the sky began to circle her, and occasionally several of their number would dive at her with their beak's gaping. The only time she had expended so much of herself in a confrontation was the one time her Master had pitted her against Traya in a supposed fight to the death, and though she had prevailed over the younger apprentice then, now she could barely keep pace with the crows assailing her on the sturdy bough which suddenly seemed as thin and deceitful as a tightrope.

She exhausted precious energy descending to the ground, and the crows winged through the dense foliage, tearing leaves in relentless pursuit. She noticed the impossibly animated, charcoal black figure of the shark-man unlimbering the huge wrapped oblong weapon on his back, and she released a scream of pent up frustration as she realized that survival lay in escape.

Her feet lost purchase on the tree's bark as she sped towards the ground at break neck pace, and one of the crows sunk its beak into the flesh between her thumb and finger. Her Lightsaber fell to the ground alongside her, and although she landed on her haunches with feline grace she was exhausted.

Blue-skin was onto her almost immediately, for although the force still provided Xanthé with precious milliseconds of warning her body was too fatigued to heed its directives. The man smashed the flat side of the bandaged weapon towards her face, and she flung her forearm up in a desperate block. The weight of his blow crushed through the light leather strapping she wore for protection, and broke through the bone. The hit pressed her own arm up against her nose with enough force to crumble the soft cartilage of her nose in an explosion of blood.

She was thrown back some five meters by the attack, and her skidding form tore new spring grass from mother earth. The pain she felt brought with it a desperate clarity, borne out of her desire to survive, and this feeling was fanned by the sight of the black crows coalescing into the standing figure of the Shinobi with a crossed out leaf on his forehead protector.

Every fiber in her body screamed at her to _move _as both men rushed her, but she closed her eyes, trusting in the power of the Force. She reached deep inside - to a place that did not acknowledge the existence of life or death, and she felt the dark side pulling power from her very life force, shortening her life span to save her in the present. She released the energy with an instinctive grunt that came from the depths of her gut, and the burst shattered the illusion she had not known was cloaking her mind.

Almost everything changed.

The host of the tailed beast was still missing, although she was no longer certain it had escaped, and she gasped as she suddenly remembered what the world should look like. The sky was blue and white, not a turbulent gloss of dark purple and blood black.

The blue skinned man retained his appearance, as did the dark haired Shinobi, although his face was taut with pain, for blood seeped from his tear ducts. They were some hundred meters across from her, and instead of her surroundings been dominated by tall and ancient trees she found herself thigh deep in long prairie grass; stained gold from the constant impressive heat of the region.

Her body lacked injuries, yet she was bone weary. The realization that she had expended all of her power fighting illusions was both chastising and terrifying, and her tired mind groped for anything that would ensure her survival. The force was no longer a close rival and lover in her mind, to be subdued and to merge with, but instead hovered at the edge of her consciousness where reaching for it caused a dull ache to thud between her eyes.

She stood tall however, and tried not to show her enemies that she was excessively weakened. Surprisingly they had not attacked her, but while the man with red eyes cleaned the blood from his face, his companion regarded her with a ravenous stare.

"So you broke free of the Genjutsu eh? No matter... just keep pouring out that chakra, Samehada has never tasted the like," his voice carried itself to her clear and strong, and he hefted the hilt of the bandaged mass which rested across his back. A slight shift in his positioning revealed the tip of the weapon, and she could see the seams of the white bandages stretch and snap to reveal a gleaming maw where the sword's point should have been.

Her Lightsaber was a scant two meters away, and she managed to summon it into her grasp. Instinct almost pushed her to activate the weapon, but a Sith had to always remember there was more than one path to victory. Against gritted teeth she sank to one knee, and offered the hilt of her blade to them in supplication.

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><p><strong>Terra, Konoha (Outskirts, east)<strong>

**Year: 747 ABY**

Considering the fact that he was a ten year old Naruto could run fast. At the moment he did not have the time to reminiscence wistfully, but he had a memory somewhere inside of him of his previous and first year in the ninja academy. He had been one of the fastest in the class in an all-out foot race, and he had earned the grudging praise of one of the lenient instructors named Iruka.

He was proud of his skill at running. It was the only thing that allowed him to evade the five twenty-something year old males pursuing him for the moment. Briefly Naruto wished that he could propel himself from rooftop to rooftop as he had seen older Shinobi do.

But he had never managed to grasp just how they climbed up the steep walls of the buildings in the village in the first place. Besides the idea was a stupid one. He was not even within the walls.

Over the past year he had been going further and further afield whenever some crisis or the other meant that there were not as many Shinobi in animal masks blatantly shadowing him, and when he had woken up in the morning and found his route to the academy free of any trailing shadows, he had instead, on a whim, headed to the east gate which only was used by Shinobi leaving on missions.

There had been nobody in sight, as usual, so he left the village walls in search of respite from the glares and whispers that usually followed him in his city. Now that he was being chased for no reason he regretted leaving the safety of the community's open glares.

Although he had never come to harm in Konoha the stares did not let up for even a moment and he had never particularly associated the space within his home's walls with security. Worse still were the watchers who constantly shadowed him. The ninja in animal masks were almost impossible to evade, so only rare events drew their numbers away from him.

Strangely enough it was the farmhand, for that is what Naruto assumed they all were, with a slightly protruding belly, beady and limp eyes, and bandy legs that gained on him steadily.

The others seemed to lack the intensity of his particular hatred for Naruto. It was this hatred which fueled him in place of athletic stamina. The man was letting loose with an almost constant warble of expletives which Naruto could barely make out, what with the sound of six pairs of legs pounding the soft loam and decaying plant life underneath their feet, and the accompanying gurgle of the stream besides which the pursuit was taking place for his ears to contend with.

The small boy with the bright orange jumpsuit stuck out in amongst the green foliage, and dark clumps of shadow and tree bark like a burning bush, so his pursuers had no trouble tracking the ninja-to-be as he ran with a zeal that his body could not hope to match for any inhuman amount of time. A couple of them were even able to pace themselves; the better to thoroughly destroy the damn fox who had taken from them all.

They were ideally located, close enough to Konoha for patrolling Shinobi not to form an intensive and searching barrier, yet far away enough from the village-city for no one to be the wiser as to who had actually "done in," the demon fox.

Naruto heard a small gasp of frustration and surprise behind him, and then he spotted the girl ahead of them. She was about his age with short brown hair and a wiry physique that was clothed in materials he recognized, yet her clothes were cut to a style that he was not familiar with.

She was knee deep in the stream and bent over intently, and his heart almost exploded with a sense of pending salvation. However it soon dawned on Naruto that his pursuers after coming all this way may go so far as to harm the girl, or silence her in a deadly way. He shifted his steps subtly, so his paces took him away from her, and deeper into a jumble of trees.

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><p>"I've found him Master," Darth Traya whispered into her com-link. She could feel the pull of the water as it rushed between her bare feet and wet her trousers up to mid-thigh as she pretended to pick up smooth stones from the riverbed.<p>

A crackling sound came to her over her Master's frequency. After two years on Terra their equipment had begun to deteriorate steadily; this was a state of affairs none of them had anticipated. The things that were beginning to malfunction were small; usually components that had been easily replaceable.

"Traya?" His questioning tone briefly managed to overpower the hiss of failing mechanisms that she could hear in her ears.

"Traya, reveal yourself to the boy." When it finally came her Master's voice was as gnarled, curt, and guttural as usual.

"Do not fail me. Much hinges on your success," her master hissed.

She nodded her head in acknowledgment, and quickly began to wade out of the water. She would set off in pursuit of the boy; the peasants she had bewitched when she had spied him leave the safety of the village for the first time in weeks would serve her purposes nicely.

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><p>At long last Naruto had to stop. He felt as if someone was gripping his lungs tightly and bringing him pain with each breath. His calves were throbbing as well - almost in sync with his heart which was struggling to break free of its ribbed cage. Now that he had stopped running the buildup of anabolic acid in his blood stream hit him fully, and he found that he could not even stand, but involuntarily sank into a kneeling position. He was like a new Karateka exhausted after his first day.<p>

The men who had been pursuing him walked into the clearing breathing heavily, yet still retaining enough within themselves to achieve their immediate objective. As they stalked closer Naruto could not help but notice how their work stained appearances soiled the pristine glade within which they all found themselves.

"That was quite the chase damned fox," it was not the fat youth, who was still out of breath, who spoke, but one of his companions. This one had dark and lank hair which his own sweat had plastered to the sides of his thin face.

"You took from all of us demon, now it's time to get yours," he said.

Naruto was shivering from a combination of the increasingly low evening temperature, fear, and exhaustion. He could not think of a reply. No one had ever called him a damned demon before, and he could only lamely repeat after the boy, "Get yours?"

"No. Yours!" the voice came from behind him.

While he had been occupied with the man directly facing him another one of the youths had circled around him. Naruto felt a sudden pressure at the base of his neck as the youth gripped tightly; slamming a knee into the small of his back.

He screamed so loudly from the awkward prone position that he could not even hear the boy repeat in a grunting tone.

"This is getting your demon."

"Only that?" the unsatisfied fat boy chuckled mercilessly. "Don't give the demon any ideas about surviving what we're about to do to him."

It is a horrible fact of human behavioral psychology that resentment often trails rules which forbid people from doing that which they wish to do. Perhaps if these farmhands, all of whom had lost someone or something to the Kyuubi incident, did not have to live without speaking openly of their fears concerning the nine-tailed fox's prisoner for over nine years they would have found ways to ease their profound loss, and they would not have done what they did.

Or perhaps it mattered not. To them Naruto was like a poisonous young viper which had yet to grow its fangs, and Traya's hypnotic abilities had only brought out what they truly wished.

When they finally came around to beating Naruto their jungle justice did not contain reason, rhyme, or rhythm. They did not strike out at him using the intricate art of Taijutsu, but they battered him in a mindless fury.

None of them noticed the girl from the river bed swinging her legs casually high up in the boughs of a tree while she watched and waited.

Finally she tired of their sport and let herself fall to the ground; her body disregarded gravity almost entirely. At first her descent was swift, but she slowed as suddenly as her fall began. The blades of grass around her boots stirred minutely with the breeze of her landing.

The men stopped beating Naruto for a moment. Not because she exhibited any expression of emotion concerning their actions, but because the forest which had been teeming with life was all of a sudden deathly still and there was a miasma of unease in the air.

"Four of you at it and he is still alive? I suppose killing him slowly is one way to make him suffer," although her words were unexpected what really drew their attention was the silver metal cylinder that slipped from a clip on her waist at the crook of her finger, and floated serenely to rest in her left hand.

"Come, I'll teach you how to go at it for real," she said. "You! Weakling! You watch... and you had better learn," she said this last with a meaningful glance at Naruto. Her voice barely punctured his battered consciousness.

The same cannot be said for what happened next. A blade of pure energy, as azure as Naruto's eyes, came into existence with a deep thrum.

The sound and blade together were completely outside the experience of the five Konoha natives in the glade, and four of them would not have much longer to contemplate its existence. She did not so much run towards them as stalk, and did not so much cut their flesh as utterly destroy.

As she killed she briefly channeled the force. Naruto was still a wreck of pain in the sod, and could not see what was happening. The vast and intense chakra he felt periodically completely befuddled him and caused him to hack and puke. Its oppressive essence robbed him of his senses completely.

Her first stride took her within range of the lanky haired youth. The diagonal slice she used to melon and section his head was totally at odds with her previous languid step.

Each subsequent strike - for it only took one touch of the bubbling cauldron of fire she had fashioned into a weapon to utterly destroy the men - was laced with an awesome killing intent that was totally at odds with the teenager's slender physique. She wielded her weapon delicately, so each thrust was a wrist snap containing the power of all her sinews in focus.

After the first three fell to her sword the terrified survivors managed to break out of the gibbering torpor that had come along with the swift deaths of their childhood friends, and they made an ill-fated 'break for it'.

The only one left was he who had expressed in his mannerisms the greatest dislike for Naruto. She did not allow him to escape, but rather jumped to an impossible height tumbling through the air. Her long legs buckling to absorb the weight of her landing before their muscles bunched together and sent her streaking towards the gibbering youth.

The attack she used to dice him into quarters was more efficient and brutal than all her previous actions. The pieces left behind were barely recognizable as human.

Oddly enough she switched off the azure blade and was once again holding a simple silver cylinder. She was not even breathing heavily. Although a single bead of sweat wound its way down her neck.

"This is the first lesson my Master will be expecting you to learn," she said.

He could not smell the burning flesh, for he was covered in his own blood and vomit. The dull thuds of the men's limbs had left contusions on his flesh, and the beating they had administered to him had rent and bloodied his clothes beyond recognition.

He couldn't stop the pain even as he tried to will it away. Distantly he felt the girl's presence hovering in the clear space, and he heard the muffled sounds of dead flesh scraping against the ground as she consolidated the remains of his attackers. He lay on the ground for what seemed like hours, and he lost consciousness more than once. Eventually however his eyes remained open and his bruised body allowed him to crane his neck and bring his savior into view.

"Spread fear."

She stood against the rough bark of a particular Oak which had outgrown its neighbors, as if it owed her allegiance, and she was utterly still; except for the wisps of her hair which shifted with the wind. Unbidden the few images he recalled of her slaughtering his assailants with a blazing-sword-made-of-light came to mind and his terror grew.

He found it almost impossible to reconcile the delicately features and green eyes of his rescuer with her latent ferocity and deadly abilities.

He lay on the ground for a period of time that he could not measure. Eventually he managed to shift his body into a slumped position; gritting his teeth as echoes of pain from the motion washed through him.

"Can you stand?" The girl asked. Her words did not mask her impatience, and that trait showed more of itself when she added, "We need to move now."

"I can stand," he finally replied. The words were ground out with a measure of desperation and anger that Traya was able to pick up on thanks to her empathetic connection to the Force.

As Naruto's toes found purchase against the soles of his sandals his blurred vision came to rest on the neatly stacked cadavers of the young men. The sight stoked the ill feeling within him and he felt something shift inside. It was a sudden release of energy that allowed him to straighten his bruised spine fully in renewal.

He did not notice the slight breathe of shock his sudden health drew out of the girl, but his eyes were drawn to her once she pushed off the tree she leaned against and walked towards him.

"My name is Traya," she said with the faintest hint of awkwardness.

She was older than he had thought, older than he was and a head taller. Naruto could not help but glance at the cylinder strapped to her right thigh. He could not help but wonder how it contained its potent blade.

The girl was muttering to herself. Mutters he could not hear her even though she was well within ear shot. Before he could question her she grabbed him by the arm, so that her nails bit into his flesh.

"Those that you call ANBU are already on their way here. They will want to know what happened to these men, but there is no time to deliver that truth and I, my Master rather, would speak with you," she said.

"Your Master?" He shifted his arm unsuccessfully trying to loosen her grip. "I don't even know who you are," he tried to pull his arm away with greater force. He was no longer aware of his lack of pain, and rapidly healing cuts and bruises.

"And you just killed four people!" he realized in belated horror. "What is that sword anyway? It's hard for me to trust you and just leave. I should stay here till the ANBU arrive."

"Those men would have killed you," she said in a flat tone.

"They were worth less than Hutt slime. You are not a child who deals in trust and not logic or are you? There are things that you do not know about your world, about your village, and about yourself. If your cowardice will not allow you to follow me of your own will I won't hesitate to carry you to my Master in a comatose state… perhaps missing a limb or two. What he requires of you does not necessitate that your body remains whole."

There was sincerity underlying her words and threats that mollified Naruto, and he tried to work past his natural distrust so as to analyze the situation he was in. He didn't know what 'Hutt slime' was but it was true that the girl had saved his life, yet from what he had seen she had no hang-ups over killing other people. There was also her harsh honesty which was more than he had ever received from anyone in the village. That included the Hokage who he knew lied to and misled him habitually.

"I'll come with you," he decided. He felt a worm of excitement beginning to work its way through his gut.

* * *

><p>Darth Osvaldus bit the tip of his tongue as he considered the 3D image of his Master's form. His teeth were also clamped around the flesh inside his cheek, and a thin rivulet of blood had since flooded his mouth with a calming acidic taste.<p>

Unwanted memories of the years he had spent in fear before he had fatefully encountered Deimus threatened to well up in his memory, so he crushed them ruthlessly.

Through the blue light of the projector he stared directly into the recess of his Master's inner sanctum aboard _The Libertine_, the Sith Lord's middle-aged War Yacht, where Deimus was rooted in meditation.

The recess was partially lit by haphazardly placed roaring briers which cast wavering shadows with their flames.

His Master's presence was imposing; despite his current diseased state of existence. His thick seven meter 'resting' height coupled with the gnarled and black bark that covered his flesh made it so. Not to speak of the dull red eyes that glinted with foreboding from under the hooded folds of growth that framed his etched face.

In one corner rested his Master's ancient war-saber. He imagined that the rune etched five meter long shaft which contained its dual blades would be cool and damp with moisture, for Deimus's mere physical presence drained enclosed spaces of warmth and energy. Although the energy blade seemed to be just out of the Sith Lord's thick bough like arms, Osvaldus knew that it could be glowing and within his Master's grasp with not so much as a half formed thought.

They had gathered soon after their arrival that identifying the characteristics of the terrestrials' use of the Force would allow them to comprehend and apply it to what they already knew, and during the years that followed Osvaldus had been able to move with almost complete independence.

Left largely to his own devices by Deimus he had been travelling through the five major nations on the continent, absorbing all the knowledge he could.

It had also just so happened to transpire that the natives of the planet excelled in sorcery, Sith and other, an excellence that had already been proving itself useful in bestowing upon Osvaldus the edge he needed to overcome his Master in a direct confrontation.

Edges like the art of making chakra. This was a concept Osvaldus chose to view as 'constantly storing a reserve of the force within oneself.

It was remarkable in that those with 'chakra' did not burn out from constantly containing the force. This was because they mixed it with their bodies' energies before storing it, and over the years their very bodies grew able to withstand even more power.

Osvaldus had been able to duplicate the effect using Sith sorcery, but although the natives stored a plentiful amount of the force it was diluted compared to what a Jedi or Sith would draw upon when needed. Despite the absence of burn-out he was still hesitant to use chakra over the undiluted Force.

They had been on Terra for over two years. Osvaldus had constantly worked towards his own aggrandizement from day one. The sorcerous practices of Terra's Shinobi held the power to speed his eventual assumption of his rightful mantle as Dark Lord of the Sith. His Master knew that fact as well as he himself did.

Osvaldus had grown proud and more reckless in his challenges to Deimus's will by the month; even though his rebellions were small and not brewed to cause an all-out confrontation. He had thought his Master to be foolish, and he had watched him grow weaker by the cycle. Especially when he proved willing to remain on a planet with an atmosphere whose composition was causing oozing lesions to break out on the bark of his skin long. It had only been a matter of time - until now.

**"I plan to leave this planet in ten days apprentice. You have been away from my side for too long. No doubt you are planning some sort of rebellion. I trained you properly after all. But enough now I have need of you and it is time you knelt before your Master once again," **Deimus's voice was gravelly and ancient. His sudden words caught Osvaldus off guard; his Master had been silent for well over twenty minutes. Osvaldus had assumed Deimus had not even been paying attention as he had spun various lies to conceal the true nature of his activities and whereabouts.

"We are leaving when!" Osvaldus demanded. His own voice erupting like a hacking cough, but it lost none of its characteristic squeal which he detested.

His query was met with silence. After a long and tense pause he said through gritted teeth.

"I meant what is your demand Master?"

**"I expect to see you in the Land of Fire by week's end,"** Deimus repeated darkly, before severing the connection.

To Osvaldus the commanding tone was totally at odds with the scarred and seeping appearance of his Master, but there remained that niggling doubt in his mind which insisted that the diseased husk previously captured in the blue light of his projector node was so steeped in dark side energy that its flesh had begun to wither away.

Osvaldus suppressed a shudder as he glanced about himself, the lingering tendrils of his Master's essence still pulling on his attention.

The room he was in was spare and less than adequate; Osvaldus was not one of those Sith who coveted material power and wealth, but no being in his dark gray garbed presence could mistake his love for simplicity as a lack of ambition.

He sat down. Not on the floor, for there was no chair in the room, but rather in the very air. He simply pulled his legs up into lotus; anchoring his mass with the force. The air around him began to steam and hiss in response to his casual use of dark side energy as he meditated.

As he reflected, he came to realize that his Master must have had a purpose in remaining on the planet. Furthermore he had allowed Osvaldus to leave his side while keeping his other apprentices under his close eye. The air exploded in purple flames which pushed outwards in a shock wave of force that left scorch marks on the concrete wall as Osvaldus grasped for understanding.

"_He's been hiding something from me! All this time he has manipulated me away from his side so as to harvest the true treasures of this world without my knowing."_

His Master must have found something that warranted his sudden haste to be off Terra. Osvaldus refused to believe that they had spent two years languishing on the planet for nothing. But what could that something be?

He thought of the legendary items of power the Shinobi he met often told tales about, but immediately dismissed them as trinkets at best considering his Master's tastes. His Master loved raw unbridled power, and he would not have the patience necessary to learn how to use such an item correctly.

Perhaps his Master had struck a deal that would grant him control of the world and its dangerous inhabitants? No, Osvaldus decided, or there would be no point in leaving the planet. Besides Osvaldus was still convinced that something about the world itself was poisoning his Master.

The silence that had absorbed his prior outpouring of rage returned as he sunk into even deeper contemplation, but eventually even this meditation was shattered by a vehement explosion of dark side energy when he realized that the only way to find out what his Master was planning would be to travel to the Land of Fire. Acting on impulse, and a dozen half conceived plans, he floated a small but powerful transmitter into his palm.

* * *

><p>"<em>He who can't bear to lose his cards will never win at Sabacc," <em>he thought to himself as he activated its beacon.

**A/N**

Thanks for reading.

**Darklighter**


	2. Chapter 2: The Dark Lord

**SHGS - Chapter Two: The Dark Lord**

**Disclaimer: I do not own, or profit, from Naruto, Star Wars, and all associated media.**

**A/N**

"This chapter has become a merger of chapters two and three,"

**- Darklighter**

"_Thoughts"_

"Speech"

"_**Abnormal sentient thoughts"**_

"**Abnormal sentient speech"**

* * *

><p>Naruto had never seen anything like it. Shaped like a dagger, and with a dull mottled green and black coat of iron the vessel before him was completely beyond his experience.<p>

It was cached in plain sight; just a crow's piss away from Konoha. Part of Naruto marveled at this accomplishment, but this close up he felt a brooding malevolence that made him wonder how it remained hidden from the city of warriors a few miles away.

Something in him, something deep in his gut, shied away from the vessel. He did not want to enter its confines.

"What is it?" He asked, stunned.

"A S-T-A-R ship," Traya said. There was a knowing look in her eyes as she revealed this. "Models like these are generally known as War-Yachts. Do I have to tell you to watch your step as you come aboard?"

She was already standing on the gangplank which had opened with an otherworldly hiss upon their approach.

During the stalk here - he found Mara never walked, but perpetually stalked - his savior had absently told him that she, her master, and the rivals that had come along with them hailed from the stars.

At the time Naruto had still felt a shade of discomfort from the beating he had received earlier, and his mind had been jaundiced.

But now his mind was clear. Predictably the reality of everything left him petrified.

A sudden churlish and childish futility stole up on him then at the injustice of it all. "I can't believe you're three years older than me," he said "people have always called me a runt but you don't look your age at all. Know that?"

"Don't even try to fuck with me," she deadpanned, "and if you do, and you find that I deign to let you live afterwards... don't be so OTT," he couldn't detect any humor or warmth in her eyes. Just cold dispassion that froze him till he burned

He had nothing to say to that. Sulking was the only thing left in his power.

"Get up here now."

There was no point in putting it off. The sun was already halfway set, and he pitied himself when he realized that some part of him had still harbored illogical notions of returning to sleep in bed own, despite all that had happened. It was his birthday for Kami's sake.

"I already came this far," he finally submitted as he joined her on the gangplank.

"And I guess I have never really had a choice in any of this. Not since you rescued me."

She smiled at that, so he imagined that her fire-blade smiled with her.

After that it was just a matter of steeling himself. He was a ninja to be. He did not know who his parents were but they came from Konoha. He came from Konoha. When facing inevitable death he knew how to make himself as iron.

In the years to come he would laugh at such absurd notions.

There was nothing overwhelmingly out-of-this world at first. Granted everything had this shiny metallic look. Even the lights that were deeply set in the walls of the passageway they followed into the deep of the ship gave out a glow that was refined and frankly... _alien_ to anything he had encountered before.

But this was not what shocked him out of all assumptions and notions about the universe.

At first he had not known what, or who, he had been looking at.

Traya had led him through a sequence of hissing doors; the serpentine acquiescence of their opaque glass forms highlighted by the lurid green coloring that was the main schema of the war-yacht's interior.

After the last door they had crossed a short causeway that by some trick of illusion, for the ship was not so vast, gave the impression that they approached an ugly square construction that hung in the midst of nothing and blackness.

"That is my Master's meditation chamber," even Traya's voice trembled oh so softly as she whispered. She had lost some of her silver composure as everything finally came to an ending of sorts, and Naruto drew sustenance from this of all things.

Though it was very dark traces of light came from the square chamber. Traya started across the causeway, and as Naruto followed he saw that the structure was larger than his first guess.

"I would advise you not to speak when we get in there," Traya said.

Naruto started a bit at that.

Ironically, though she had saved his life, there had never been a point where Naruto thought that Traya could be his friend, or could care about him in any capacity other than as an objective.

He had seen the same look she had about her in veteran Shinobi. He may have only been ten, but some of those veterans moonlighted as tutors and administrators in his school. He knew the look of a warrior.

Later in life, when he discovered more about his own past, Naruto would shrug at all of this. His being had been steeped in violence since before birth, and the tea his destiny's weaver drank was death.

"Thanks for the advice?"

"I'm not saying keeping quiet will mean that you will end up leaving here alive, but you never know," she added helpfully.

"Every little bit counts," there was a false swagger in his step as he followed her. He realized he was more a prisoner now than at any time before in his short life. If she had wanted to she could have brought him here without one or two limbs as she had threatened to do previously.

Yet he couldn't help but be excited. When all was said and done it wasn't every day you got the opportunity to meet beings from the stars. Naruto didn't think so at any rate. You may wonder at that, but as a being that had spent most of his life watching people conjure flame, lighting, and water from thin air; his mind and creativity was somewhat malleable.

Once the dread of the being that inhabited the meditation chamber had fully settled over him Naruto approached grim destiny in a manner that would have made anyone proud.

Traya punched some symbols into a shimmering keypad that hovered where none had been before. There was a very long pause. After this Naruto felt the attention of the being within shift fully onto the two of them. After a burning and intense second that left Naruto's spirit wrung out and dry a noise came that sounded like confirmation; the green doors slid aside.

Then he met a tree.

He met an evil, talking tree.

* * *

><p>Deadly strength lived within the creature that stepped gingerly down the mountain trail sandwiched a scant three meters between Kisame and himself.<p>

He was careful not to forget that; despite how calmly she had surrendered herself to their will in the end. He was glad that though she was well used to this world - as could be inferred from her strange but adapted garments and knowledge of common forest lore - she had not yet met a Shinobi of his unique talents.

But now she had broken one of his strongest Genjutsu, and in the doing causing him considerable pain. He could not predict the outcome of their next battle.

Usually he would have exterminated a being of such power that had fallen into his mercy. His secret motivation, the destruction of Akatsuki from within, dictated that yet another group pursuing the – best left alone – tailed beasts was untenable. But there were reasons why he had fought against every instinct, and was even now travelling at apparent ease behind her.

Although the decision could eventually come to haunt him the stark bluntness of her surrender still shocked him.

"My people are well versed in betrayal. It is our way. I have two masters. One of them who would have had me kill the pair of you. As you can see I have tried and failed to do. My other master on the however would offer you and yours power unimagined. Which of them would you honor?"

From her tone at the time one wouldn't have thought that she had been kneeling at the time as she proffered them a weapon which was clearly _millennia _ ahead of anything Terra could produce.

_This alien female may lead me to my end._

"You still don't understand me," she said suddenly.

They had been walking for two days, avoiding the towns, and she had said little except to complain about her _lekku_ when the sun was up, or the cold wind was out.

Kisame and Itachi had made quite a few jokes at her expense, using hand language of course, but as hardened killers they soon tired of that. They probably hated travelling slowly by road and forest almost as much as she did.

"We haven't really tried to if you think about it," Itachi decided to say.

"Not that you haven't told us bucketful's already," Kisame called back. He twisted one eye to peer past his sheer hairstyle and looming sword.

"Well neither of you have told me where we are going, or who we are going to see. I told you that the way of my people was of betrayal, but you missed the point. I only betrayed my first master after his way - killing the both of you - proved _inexpedient_. Now that I intend to ally with you, and with the intentions of my second master, you will find me very co-operative."

"Your level of fluency in our language is very impressive," Itachi

"What?" For the first time she looked confused. Language apparently was not such a big deal for her.

"You don't speak like a foreigner, or a native of any region farther than half a world away," Kisame added helpfully.

"You speak like someone who has been living in this part of the world all their life," Itachi continued, " add that to your strange mannerisms, technology, and dress you don't need to tell us much... or explain yourself," he concluded.

She was about to voice something to this but the shark like blue hulk ahead was evidently fed up with the conversation.

"Bitch from the stars wants to enlist shadowy group of criminals to take over the galaxy," he said.

"We're thinking about it."

* * *

><p>At first the tree, monster, man, <em>whatever! <em>

Didn't do much to harm him; it only checked their minds deeply right before they entered, yet even with that touch Naruto felt the age and power of the thing.

Now it focused in shifting its shape. He didn't know if it was flaunting for his own benefit, but what had been a tree flowed like a molten lava of roots, earth, flesh, bark, and bone to becoming a bipedal creature of strapped muscle.

He supposed that he should be thankful for small mercies. The transformative display had been so awe and fright inspiring that the final seven and a half meter height of Traya's Master's form was by contrast normal.

"**You have done well Traya," **the creature said.

What Naruto supposed were lips moved, though it was hard to tell with so little light, but he felt more like he got a feel for what it was saying coming from inside of him and pouring out. Cold; everything about these people was so cold, and something hot inside him could barely take it anymore. Something inside wanted to break free.

He noticed for the first time that the huge creature was actually hunched over. It was as if it could not maintain full posture despite its apparent strength and vitality.

"**I will now claim the tailed beast."**

Surprisingly Traya took the time to duck him a small look even though her Master's attention was full on her. She looked... sad?

"_Huh? Claim the beast?" _

"Umm Traya? Is there anything else? In the end I am actually really happy that you saved me from those guys you know? And I didn't really mean all that stuff about you being small. I was just a bit confused. Jheez it must be awesome coming from the stars right?

"I dunno if it's for me, but I'm just saying... yea... it's been a long day today. It's my birthday you know? Crazy right? But it's true.

"That's why if I could just you know... leave... I won't be any trouble. I won't tell anybody about any of this and I definitely don't know anything about any tailed beasts or whatever. Maybe you saved the wrong guy? I can help you find him you know. The guy you're really looking for. Heh. Lucky you to have a native that can guide you to the right guy and all."

Naruto barely knew what he was saying, nor could he tell if his words had any effect but he simply continued to speak. Fear was on him to the point where he was on the brink of urinating on himself. In fact the only reason he stopped was for the need to take a breath.

He would have continued if he did not feel the presence of Traya's Master suffuse him fully in the next moment.

This time he knew who the strange alien was.

Deimus the last Dark Lord of the Sith.

He experienced a fragment of a mind several orders of magnitude more organized, coherent, and _fruitful_ than his.

He died.

He lived.

He felt the Dark Lord rip something out of him. Something foreign that did not _belong_ in him, but was _put _there.

As this happened he could have learned about the truth of his birth and existence, such was the melding of minds between him and the Dark Lord at that instant, but Deimus was a Dark Lord and Deimus did not wish to throw him any really tasty bones.

As a parting gift and Naruto got the sense, some obligatory or ritual payment, Deimus implanted a rudimentary knowledge of the society he came from, and the language commonly spoken.

Yet even as this knowledge transferred in Deimus took something powerful from him and assimilated it into his own being.

In the years to follow, and as he grew in the Force, Naruto would learn to come to nurse this first betrayal dearly against his Master.

As it was all he felt was unending agony.

Oddly when it was finally over he smelt all that was sweet; honeysuckle and rosemary, fresh sugar, and scented jasmine, and much that was bitter, fire with thyme, and ash mixed with chalk.

Naruto would not wake for a long time. A week and more would pass before he rejoined the world of the living. More than enough time for the only world he'd ever known to be gone.

Osvaldus had always _hated_ these sorts of meetings.

This was where he and the Shinobi of this world thought alike.

Though philosophically he would place them as closer to the famed and rare Mandalorians they shared his Sith penchant for dirty dealings, and underhanded tactics.

By contrast, the fawning politician he was having breakfast with wouldn't be able to hide a conspiracy if he was given two haystacks and an ocean.

That was as it was though, and in the end everything was steadily falling into place.

Life was like a Sabaac game. He had learned to stand by this precept on Nar Shaddaa long before Deimus had ever crossed his path.

_Nerves and planning are the only tools needed to win._

It hadn't taken him very long at all to realize that the civilian governments which claimed to control the strongest Shinobi villages were actually controlled by the very military forces which purported to protect them.

The whole thing was an organized crime ring that prevented anything new from truly emerging on planet. To achieve his objective - the harnessing of the planet's force latents- he had to appease the civilians and the Shinobi, and this meeting was about appeasing the civilians.

_Let greed do what my words do not._

"So you are saying that there will be many, many more of these... droids?" the worm grunted.

The man was surprisingly sleek for a high ranking official of the water country, whose type tended to run to fat, still you wouldn't have thought just looking at him that this man represented the interests of almost three quarters the industrial and commercial factions in the world; all the important ones anyway.

Osvaldus didn't do things by half measures, but he had never been much in favor of the _procedural _aspects of things.

"Yes many more. Enough droids for many factories, and more besides, weapons for enlisted forces, precious stones - common the galaxy over – will be provided in payment to all that join our cause. The secrets of space travel, and eventually… who knows? "

"Eventually..." The man was leaning forward. Dull eyed and slack. The whole of his shirt front was in his untouched breakfast, and he did not even care. Such was the skill with which Osvaldus caressed his mind.

"I think that is enough," Osvaldus delicately dabbed at his mouth with a table napkin before slowly stepping out of the private booth. The breakfast throng was crowding close.

He hated the water country.

_Eventually there will be no need for procedure. The Shinobi will have ships. I will have their allegiance by any means necessary, and anyone in the galaxy who tries to stop me will be obliterated._

Yes. He couldn't wait till he was dealing mostly with Shinobi again. At least they were warriors.

* * *

><p>Jake Livermore had hidden under the bush for hours. He had hidden as if his life depended upon his skill at doing so.<p>

The small girl with the blue baton of destruction had killed all of his friends. It was a wonder she had not spotted him as he could smell their corpses from his current position.

He thought he could hear what he thought were ravens, and or vultures pecking at them.

So much for his good day of fun.

He didn't really know what to do as it had been his friends goading him on into following them after the demon boy.

Jake didn't really have anything so deeply personal against the brat but it had seemed fun. That was until he had realized the intensity of what they were doing.

He had slunk away after Chuta placed his knee squarely in the brat's back. That had been enough for him. Some things were too much.

He had dived into the bushes once he heard the screams, and it was only now, many hours later, that he decided to move.

He had been forced to remain as still as he had ever done before in his life when the A.N.B.U. had found the bodies. By that time he was halfway back to the village, and by some miracle he had been able to lie his way out of their interrogation talking about how he had visited a cousin in one of the farm hamlets.

Eventually he would tell a real cousin, a ninja, what had happened.

After all someone had to make sure that the demon brat had conjured up more of his ilk from somewhere, and the dead guys had been his friends after a fashion.

That girl had certainly fought like a demon. From the little he heard of course.

But that someone couldn't be him. Let his cousin do it and take all the acclaim or drama that came with that.

Of course there was no way he could have considered telling the A.N.B.U. he passed the truth.

Being charitable was one thing being stupid was another.

They would probably blame him.

* * *

><p><strong>Two Days after Osvaldus's distress beacon.<strong>

Jedi Knight Finton Stetil did not know what to make of recent events.

It was not often that this was the case. Knight Stetil was no longer a green backed neophyte fresh out of his Padawan greys and temple lock. No. Finton had been embedded within Coruscant's criminal underworld for the best part of three years, and the trail of jacked spice and prostitution had led him all the way back to the ancestral and eternal home of all such things. Nar Shaddaa.

He supposed he was lucky to have been born not only force sensitive, but also on Coruscant. The planet's Jedi enclave was the only one still in existence that had the resources to fund a deep cover operation such as this one. A mission that had so far spanned worlds without end, but missions such as this one were all he knew.

The grime such an operation left on one's soul didn't bother him in the slightest.

Finton Stetil wielded force lightning in battle and yet still walked in the light. He was assured of his own morality.

Still... he couldn't help but think what it would have been like to live in the days of legend. What would it have been like to live in the time of the Skywalkers?

Caedus, Luker, and Anakahaen.

Jaina, Marah, and Leehla.

What would they have thought of him? What would he have thought of them? One thing he did know was that a Jedi could not help but judge.

"What you thinking about this op Fint?"

Mexes Herstock had a hulking voice that overmatched his slender frame. A Mandalorian didn't have any right to be pretty as he was, nor to have a body that was yet to be scarred by battle.

Sometimes Finton wondered what had brought a being from such proud stock so low as to run with spice traffickers.

Mostly though, when it came to Mexes, he thought about what it would be like when he stopped being 'Deadly Fintin Aim,' and became Finton Stetil Jedi Knight.

It was always a hard thing when you had to kill a friend.

He wished the part of him that didn't want that day to ever come wasn't so vast.

"I'm never sure of anything that slimy Hutt asks us to do," Fint said.

"Or any Hutt for that matter," Mexes agreed.

Vasuya wasn't that bad as far as Hutt's went, but then the whole species were the most literal slime balls in existence so that wasn't worth much.

"It's in the Wild regions, westerly," Mexes drawled. He always liked to discuss a pending mission no matter how he relished insulting their soulless employer. He was relaxed. Dressed casually as they were at home in the apartment they shared on Nar Shaddaa. For some reason neither of them really trusted anyone else on planet.

"N'old fashioned slave run. Though I don't know which team will be under us. I hope it's not the Yavanese Terrors. They're such a dirty bunch, and I can't stand that prick Tarasine.

Tarasine Waj came from good traditional Mandalorian stock.

Mexes was his living antithesis.

Mexes was very strange for a Mandalorian.

His personality just didn't fit with their cultural ethos. Except for when he was fighting. Then he was all Mandalorian and more. He often insisted to Fint when drunk that how he was when he fought should have been all that mattered, but Mandalorians are particularly stiff about certain things, and the few of them there were working out of Nar Shaddaa avoided him like the plague whenever it could be helped.

And as for Finton?

He had an undercover operation to worry about.

There isn't much time in the week for socializing when you have to worry about things like that.

"A contact of the Hutt's alerted him to an unclaimed target ripe for material plunder," Mexes released a theatrical shudder and blood curdling grin.

Sometimes he could be uncouth.

"I think it's going to go the way it always goes," Finton said.

"How is that?"

"You and I are going to kill a lot of people."

* * *

><p><strong>Present <strong>

There were very few things, or tasks, in this world that could get under Hatake Kakashi's skin.

One of those things was paperwork, a curse he shared with every elite ninja plying his or her trade under the sun.

Today was one of those rare days when he had to take care of his assigned burden of the dreaded paperwork. Shinobi hated doing it so much that the lower ranks would surely have rebelled if their betters had been excluded from serving in the trenches, and so for 20 hours every month he found himself seated beside a motley collection of Chuunins and Jounins.

It was sheer coincidence that the particular confidential note reached him.

The Kyubbi had been kidnapped.

Flash's kid was gone.

* * *

><p>"<strong>Over a week has elapsed since I summoned you. Why have you been tardy?"<strong>

"I have been in the water country furthering our aims Master," Osvaldus replied smoothly.

By now he had long since learned to remain somewhat at ease in the presence of his liege, and he deftly shielded his true motives from the questing mental branches of his Master's mind with a sheer veil of simple and patently out of context truth.

To win a Sabaac game such as this one had to be equal to pressure, and his Master had spent much time training him.

He used those skills in their entirety; plus the bits and bobs he had pieced together for himself.

Not every battle was fought with Lightsabers.

As far as Osvaldus knew he won this round because his Master gave no sign that he had found anything amiss in his oldest student's mind.

"**We must speak. I have begun to accomplish what the dark side sent me here to do. I have begun to gather power that will make the galaxy tremble. Ten days ago I consumed on of the Tailed Beasts."**

"Which one?" Osvaldus asked, praying to all his ancestral spirits that Deimus did not detect a hitch in his tone or an extra bead of perspiration upon his brow.

_The Tailed Beasts?! The old Satyr told me that they were a dead end! That we could never contain their power and yet live!_

"**I do not choose to tell you which I have consumed, but tomorrow I would have you go into Konoha and determine how much is known about a certain Uzumaki Naruto. Depending on your results we may have to destroy much of the city before we leave, but I estimate that their neighbors will fall upon them like wolves if we do enough damage so it does not matter much at any rate. It has been a long time since I sated my thirsts."**

So blunt the way his Master insisted on speaking directly to your mind. So blunt the power his Master now wielded. Whether he had been blinded by hubris, or simply did not know what to look for. Osvaldus had not noticed how healthy his Master looked.

Already the Lesions that had been a constant despite his transfigurations were closing their weeping sores. A vast energy seemed to bubble in the force in the place where his Master stood. Vaster than anything he could imagine.

"Master," he bowed, "I live to obey."

A smile did not return to his heart till later. Later when he was on his way to carrying out his Master's bidding, licking his wounds and waiting for a better opportunity for his act of usurpation, when he got the _most _interesting message from Xanthe.

_She believes she can enlist Akatsuki_

They were an organization his shadows had heard much about.

If the work he had already done with the commercial powers of the world was his zero, and the signal he had sent to Nar Shaddaa was his two, then Akatsuki could be his three.

_Zero, two, and three... Idiot's array. There is no stronger hand in Sabaac._

Finally the smile that had been threatening to burst forth his heart managed to exert a slight pull on one corner of his lip.

_(If he wasn't such an evil bugger I__probably wouldn't be so glad to report that this uncharacteristic feeling did not last long.)_

He heard a dry whine that he had not heard for two years. The hypnotic sound of Deimus's state of the art War-Yacht, _The Libertine,_ as its hyper drive powered up fully for the first time in a long while.

A few seconds later he spied its sleek form for an instant as it streaked through the sky roiling the evening clouds in its wake. It zoomed straight as an arrow for Konoha.

At least he was more at ease with the frustration and anger that roiled in his gut in those moments. He embraced the emotions fully releasing a wordless psychic communications to his Master huddled in the bowels of _The Libertine._

That soundless scream contained all the decades of hurt he had endured, and _thrived _under as a Sith apprentice.

"_**Osvaldus..." **_His Master lingered over his name, and his voice positively purred with malicious glee.

"_**I depart with Mara and my new apprentice, and leave you to wizen on this rock. I sensed the stench of deception on you from the moment you ambled into my sight, and I have decided to leave you to reflect for a while on your folly... before I come back to collect your head."**_

_No Master._

The words came unbidden to his brain as he watched the last trail of his mentor's ship disappear over the horizon and the psychic connection receded.

_You have had me off-balance this whole while though I did not realize it. Now I realize that the Dark side is moving yet we are still in the early rounds. The cards in my possession haven't lost their power yet._

* * *

><p>Before he left Terra Deimus announced his brief stay on the planet in a way that he had held off doing for a long time with much difficulty.<p>

The illness he had succumbed to whilst on Terra had infuriated him. Mostly this was due to the pride he had in his control over his biological functions, and transformations. Now that he was hale and healthy he aimed to vent his wrath fully.

On that day Deimus tore a rent in the force that would take decades to heal.

The land of Fire was the most populated in the entire known world, and the echoes of the grief he caused at the heart of their military operation in Konoha would announce the eyes of a hostile galaxy to Terra in a way that would engender fear and loathing in all the land for generations to come.

He took much joy in instructing _The Libertine's _AI to destroy much of the Hokage Tower, and surrounding governmental structures of the city. As he watched the fires spread, and the city burn, from the safety of his meditation chamber he reflected on how, in some ways, _The Libertine's A.I _was so much closer to him than any of his disciples.

Its intelligence operated on a level that was comfortably closer to his, and this led Deimus to feel something like camaraderie towards his sleek ship; which of course was comfortably under his control, and thoroughly corrupted by his evil.

They broke out of the planet's atmosphere together, and Konoha became another pleasant memory shelved and catalogued.

The world became just another small step on the long road to Godhood.

Neti and ship were content.

* * *

><p>Kakashi was in the Hokage Tower when the building was struck.<p>

Well... he was on it. He was on its roof.

This singular fact is what saved his life, and the lives of many of his fellow Shinobi.

He had rushed to the Tower after reading the news of Naruto's abduction.

The Hokage had been visibly shaken by the news more so by the fact that it had gone unreported for so long.

Everybody hated paperwork, but Kakashi suspected there was just a little bit more to it than that.

They quickly congregated onto the roof A.N.B.U. squads and Juunin only. From the brief missive penned by a dismissive Chuunin, a girl out of fairy tale had destroyed a group of innocent farmhands.

The Hokage had started to take the matter very seriously after his scrying ball had failed to locate Naruto.

It was then that the Hokage called all the vital personnel on to the traditional roof staging area.

Danzo made an appearance. Somehow word had filtered down to the sewers.

Kakashi's ruby eye burned at the sight of the man.

Just as instructions were being yelled out, the retrieval of the Villages future weapon absolutely vital, a dark blot appeared in the skyline.

It was hard to say what the approaching mass was, or even to say how big it was.

Kakashi was soon to find out that was the least of their worries.

At what seemed like an impossible distance the vessel, for that is what it had to be, opened fire with virulent gouts of energy.

The beams were some twisted cross of technology that produced magma, fire, and lightning all in one.

The only fact that saved most of their lives was that _The Libertine's _cannons purposefully targeted the waistline of the building, the better to slaughter those who travailed within, before tracking all over the place to spread general carnage.

The Shinobi did what Shinobi did best; evading like hares, and getting the hell out of there, fleeing off the roof tops with wooden sandals or leather boots made to defy the wrath of the gods.

Civilians died like poultry, but their blood could not even char the street as the heat from the barrage of lasers and out breaking fires gobbled up the heat, and turned the center of the city into a mess.

_The Libertine _circled briefly, recording all it had wrought for future study and analysis, before dropping a small proton bomb on the city outskirts.

With that last kiss of death Naruto was whisked to the heavens.

* * *

><p>It took the Jedi calm of a dozen years active service to stop Fint from fidgeting.<p>

He had long admired his friend's taste in transport vessel. His Mandalorian War-Yacht was heavily customized with sensor arrays salvaged from old Fondorian technology, and her squat but symmetric shape oozed with weapons systems.

Still he always worried before an action. Something about having to sit down and let others take care of the _getting there _bothered him immensely.

He watched his friend now.

Mexes was hacked in.

That was what they called it these days the art of piloting.

Powerful A.I technology had made direct ship to ship battle much too costly in personnel and material.

It became a literal question of who could throw the most money at war.

As it turned out no one had quite that much money and most would be conquerors resorted to the age old tactics of orbital insertion as opposed to planetary obliteration.

All was well that ended well he supposed.

Though the ugly helmet that covered all of his partner's face was not the smartest of ; combined with Mexes formidable intellect they were a match for almost anything else loping around the cosmos.

So why was the Force telling him something was about to go terribly wrong?

"Hey… Hex... those are the slave carriers right?"

The viewport was not so large, and he could barely see everything there was to see in the silent night sky. Still the troop carriers which would carry their bounty had started off on a fast approach vector.

More out of habit than anything else Mexes Herstock craned to regard things from his partner's point of view even though he was enmeshed in sensory data that dwarfed the visual perspective.

"Yea Fint it is. I guess they're tracking in on the beacon that brought us here. It just so happens that's a heavily populated area from all the data I'm getting, you think - Woah!"

Mexes was caught off by a sudden jarring as a War-Yacht twice the size of their vessel burst out of the atmosphere and fired an old fashioned dirty nuke wired with shield deflectors at one of the slave ships destroying it utterly.

Fint's jaw dropped as horror dawned on him. He had met the vilest beings the galaxy had to offer, but this was the first time he had found himself in the presence of a Dark Lord. He hadn't thought there were any left.

The presence bore down on him like a weight and he knew it for what it was. The power was displayed so openly, so flagrantly, that it could be no other being.

Suddenly the spice rings of Nar Shaddaa were a low priority - a very low priority.

Vayusa had sent three crews in War-Yachts to protect her slave ships and their two companions streaked off in pursuit of their attacker.

"I'm thinking of following. The odds will be too stacked against him that way, and it will be quicker. I don't care how fancy his AI is," Mexes said.

He was tense. Though he did not count the slavers and spice dealers amongst his friends, Mexes honored his business dealings, and he hated to lose.

Only two slave ships remained.

Finton wanted them both destroyed.

"No," he said quickly but in a measured tone. He was tempted to use force persuasion, but Mexes was a smart man and he had never had the need before.

He relied on his words.

"Let's make sure we can get them in to land and load up the slaves. I think that other ship just wants to leave, although I would be very interested to know how it discovered this planet, I have never seen it on any map and it took the A.I's a long while to plot a course."

He was right. Although Mexes monitored the situation the whole way in, ready to break off his escorting action and join the brawl above the atmosphere, they broke through without incident, and the slave ships were soon settling down amongst lush forestry in plain sight of a primitive, but very large city. The engines burned much of the surrounding to ashes but the pilots of these machines did not care much about such things.

Mexes informed him that the enemy ship had managed to engage its hyper drives after crippling one Yacht and destroying the other.

Unfortunately the surviving War-Yacht contained the irrepressible Tarasine Waj, who curtly informed Mexes that he was returning to Nar Shaddaa to lick his wounds. He was sure to inform Mexes that he considered himself a better man and less of a craven cur as he had actually engaged the enemy.

"Hold off a second," Finton said, when he saw that Mexes was making to land in a clearing not too far away from the slavers.

"Tarasine just called me a cur so I hope you're not asking me to hold off on joining the slave run," Mexes was roused.

"No. No not that. Just circle around a bit, plant her down somewhere a bit farther away and we can walk the rest of the distance."

Finton stood up to indicate his readiness to join the battle.

Armor came on to cover overalls and assault rifle was slung across his front.

Mexes was already armored, although he was unarmed as of yet, and this mollified him a bit.

"Just another one of those feelings you get-a-time huh?" he said, his frustrations breaking softly. He did not know about the Lightsaber that Fint had uncomfortably strapped inside his thigh. It would be really embarrassing if the Jedi Knight ended up losing one pant leg and armor so that he could reach it.

The Jedi Knight wasn't even quite sure how he was supposed to accomplish that in time for it to be any good if it came down to it.

"Yea just one of those. We need to let the grunts get a little seasoning anyway. We'll be joining them by the by after they take care of the initial mess,"

Mexes obeyed his orders and landed a way away. They were hidden from direct view and there was a plausible separation between the main body of pirates and themselves.

"Hope you're ready Mexes said as he struggled out of his helmet. He made his final preparations as Fint wordlessly shouldered his rifle and began the egress sequence for the first exit hatch.

_I hope we are friend._

There was still a little bit of daylight.

_At least I have my Lightsaber._

That was comforting.

* * *

><p>The Shinobi Village of the Leaf had not even begun to think of recovering from the attack.<p>

Although the day was clear elsewhere a haze of gritty smoke and sparking embers cast a pall over the city.

They had not even begun to think of recovering when two dark shapes loomed over the village and proceeded to settle on vital training fields trampling them utterly.

It was as this point; as the Humans, Trandoshans, and Twi'leks ambled out of their transports to collect - what they thought - were helpless primitives that the minds of all the Shinobi gathered in Konoha collectively broke.

They experienced a sequence of emotions all at once; amazement, denial, and rage.

They had been attacked by beings from the heavens.

They would have their blood.

Those who had been using water Jutsu to help combat the fires quickly stopped as they watched the approaching gaggles of alien invaders, each at least two hundred creatures strong.

All the Shinobi in Konoha surged up and over the city's walls, flitting from walk to walk, bursting from forest copse to stream bed to sheltering stone, and vaulting through the broken tree line to attack the enemy.

Kakashi was in the forefront of the onrushing Shinobi hordes.

Scattered fire began to come from aliens who had spread out into clumps of four or five.

They still weren't taking the enemy seriously. They scoffed at the leather clothing, glittering metal knives, and throwing stars.

It was the kind of mistake you could only pay for with your life.

The Shinobi had seen the full scope of damage laser cannon could do. It had not even been thirty minutes since the power of their city had been broken by it.

But one thing about Shinobi was that they learned fast.

It was why they still survived.

Vasuya's mercenaries by contrast had never met Shinobi.

They did so now as metal implements they considered dull and primitive began to reach their targets and the Shinobi began to calculate the rate of fire of the weapons used against them, the angle of trajectory and the degree of accuracy.

All of these problems solved in an instant, adapted against, Shinobi.

Jutsu began to rain down on both groups of invaders as skilled Jounin began to find the right timing between bursts of the enemy's automatic weapons to bring their greatest weapons to bear.

That was when it became a slaughter.

Kakashi watched as Fire, Water, Earth, Wind, Summons and Genjutsu took to the field of battle.

Out of the corner of his eye he saw the Monkey-King Summon of old man Hokage in staff form as the grizzled warrior waded deep into a body of thirty men and beasts dealing death with his Bo-staff.

His Sharingan whirred with activity as he sped through the chaos; eliminating particularly tough and or composed enemies with the assassination capabilities of his trusted **Chidori**.

He barely took notice of his fellow Shinobi pummeling enemies to death with bare fisted Taijutsu as he exacted his own price from the enemy, zipping around the battlefield without heed to exhaustion or regard for his own life, Kakashi became a talisman in Konoha that day that will always be remembered.

Even as it is remembered there that he slinked away in the end, despite all, stained with everlasting shame.

_How long can I keep this going?_

It didn't take long at all for him to find his answer, and when he found it he was not quite sure what he was supposed to do with it.

_Till they are all dead and none remain._

* * *

><p><strong>AN**

"Edited."

**- Darklighter**


	3. Chapter 3: The Unifying Skirmish

**SHGS - Chapter Four: Let's Play Sabaac**

**Disclaimer: Stars In My Pocket Like Grains Of Sand by Samuel R Delany is a Science Fiction classic that must be purchased by any serious fan of the genre... IMHO**

**A/N**

"Thanks to those who followed or commented, it is great motivation. There is a mistake in the previous chapter, Jedi Knight Finton Stetil is the final name, I will be reviewing all places where the name is spelled Finston. I will rewrite the whole chapter a bit at some point."

**- Darklighter**

"_Thoughts"_

"Speech"

"_**Abnormal sentient thoughts"**_

"**Abnormal sentient speech"**

* * *

><p>"Following the decision of the Lord of the Land of Fire, and the acquiescence of the merchant and Shinobi councils of the Land of Fire, I Danzo Shimura, Fifth Hokage of the Land of Fire, find you, Hiruzen Sarutobi guilty of treason... Punishable by public execution. Have you anything to say before we complete this sad day? There was a time when you were an inspiration to us all."<p>

One would have thought that Danzo had not been yearning for this moment for most of his mature life from the way he pronounced his final judgement.

Hiruzen knew better though, having rivalled against the new Hokage throughout his own period of prominence. It was the way of the world and of politics. An endless cascade of parading old men. It was only fitting that in his final hour of triumph Danzo should play the part of humble victor.

He tried to shift in his bindings even though he knew how futile that would be. Still... he would like only to reach the itch skittering from face to neck to crotch.

Most Hidden Villages had ancient proscribed methods for dealing with renegade Hokage. Konoha had the dubious, by Shinobi reckoning, distinction of never having executed a sitting Hokage in their recorded and secret histories.

That was about to change.

There was much he would say, but to speak would endanger the greatest mission he had ever set out to accomplish. He had not spoken whilst under special Jounin Ibiki's tongs, and his co-conspirators had both paid their prices. But now faced with the anguished face of Asuma, forcibly restrained, whether from rescuing his father or killing him - none could tell, Hiruzen felt the words trying to force their way out.

Kami he would speak to him!

But he had bought the Village's... no... the **planet's** future with his life,and to break his silence would jeopardize all...

The execution space was a wide raised platform. To the side, a good distance from Hiruzen in the center, was a raised table of judgement with the Hokage as chair. His wide red hood of office shielded his eyes from the view of the common man yet Hiruzen was sure that glimmers of joy must lurk somewhere in those grim pools on this day of days.

Danzo had evidently taken his silence for what it was and the executioner stepped forward.

A grim ANBU who he had probably met once upon a time off duty.

For show more than anything else, how could he let his son see him die an apparent coward? Hiruzen commenced an epic struggle against his bonds.

The ANBU leaped backwards as Danzo half rose from his dias. Shinobi and civilian alike who had gathered to watch the un-watchable surged away in barely constrained terror as he almost, _almost! _brought his heavily fettered and spread arms around to clasp his fingers in a hand-sign.

Then his struggling ceased as the chakra sucking nature of the metal that bound him overwhelmed his efforts, and his arms were sent springing back painfully spread eagle.

Calm was restored by the by, and he had a final view of the broken Village spread before his raised position. Broken people and broken buildings sheltering in a despoiled forest and all watching a broken old man die.

The setting sun crowned what remained of his tower.

Danzo was welcome to it.

Through all that had happened over the past vicious weeks, "The Professor" had known that this would be the most likely end result of his communion with a power that the rigid traditions of his world had blinded him from comprehending.

The Force.

"Proceed," the new voice of power. The new leader.

Danzo had taken charge.

There was nothing left for him to do in this world.

He cast a last look at his son. He tried to convey the sense of a reassuring or comforting nod but was met only by the wall of incoherent rage and confusion that blazed in Asuma's eyes.

After his final moments, no one could say that Hiruzen Sarutobi, The Professor, Third Hokage of Konoha and master of the legendary Sannin uttered a whimper as he died.

He did not even feel the sword, having unshackled his spirit in the instant before it pierced his heart, tracking down and up in a U form to ritually disembowel his corpse with gushing squelches of blood and the hysterical cheers of dopa-mine fueled masses.

Old Shinobi had lots of little tricks.

* * *

><p><strong>Twenty-Five Days Earlier.<strong>

He had headed for Konoha quickly after the the resounding boom of his former Master's ship overshot him ahead.

Former Master, because the next time they met this card game of life would end one way or another.

There was no hope of reaching the city in time, but that was not what hurried his steps. The transponder bringing Vasuya's mercenaries indicated that they were already in system. Osvaldus raged at himself for overlooking the threads of the Force that had weaved this moment into being, but there was still time for him to steal the crescendo and ride the final wave.

A short while after his master had broken the planetary atmosphere Osvaldus saw the first slave ships. Ugly and fat constructions, their convex forms gave the image of the bulging bellies of termite queens.

They snaked down from the sky on ion wings.

By this time he could see the city in the distance from the hillock the road followed.

If he had been further away he could have even traced his way to Konoha from the thick plumes of towering black ash that smoked up into the sky, or from the smell of flame devoured flesh and wood that was even now riding the winds.

He had no doubt that infiltrating deep cover Shinobi teams from rival nations were already headed to the scene just as he was.

He needed to get off the road. Heading off the hillock he considered the ways in which he was unlike the inhabitants of this world, how this moment of their anguish would help seed his dominion.

He waded roughly through the bracken at hill's base, about to head into the forest. His eyes had traced the destructive landing made by the slave ships as their torpid bellies settled and that combined with the overhanging trees meant that he almost missed the entrance of a third player.

The Dark side had not lied to him yet however, and would not lie to him about this of all things.

The sweetness of the light.

Innocence, justice, and order.

A Jedi had come.

_Perfect._

* * *

><p>Finton had never seen Mexes execute an imperfect landing, no matter how war torn or treacherous the environment.<p>

The knot of foreboding and prescience that had been pushing at his brain since they had entered the system had caused him to wish that something unnatural would happen. A fault in the Ai's algorithms, or an uncharacteristic mistake on the part of his partner, but no such boon was forthcoming.

_Can't help that I asked him to land in such a convenient spot._

There was a frustration that was trying to sink Jedi Knight Finton, it had been trying to sink him from the moment that they dropped in system.

They had exited to set foot on soil, a substance Fint would have had no physical memory of encountering if his life as a Jedi Knight and erstwhile spice smuggler had not taken him to some of the universes backwaters.

This was not soil such as on those worlds though. Not the earth of a land that had had all of its resources sucked out from underneath in a churning mass of industrialization and spoilage.

No. This was verdant green earth so far unspoiled by _progress_.

He raised his rifle to his face and the minuscule droid chip in his brain instantly magnified his telescopic to zoom in on the disembarking slavers. His body slung down into a habitual crouch as he began a rapid scuttle towards the impending action.

These the small computer chip marked yellow for friendly, whilst painting the whole walled city beyond the mercenaries a dull glinting red.

Mexes by his side did the same, and the only sound for a while was the soft crunch of their boots pulping the loam and plant matter underfoot.

It was only a matter of time before they broke the tree-line, although a good distance from the main body of personnel from Nar Shaddaa.

The city was relatively large for a pre-industrial society such as this one, and he could not see all of its decimated expanse. The wind carried the hysterical babble of an alien tongue as the native combated the licking flames that were threatening to devour their homes.

He knew that the destruction he saw could not have been wrought by the Slavers, whose vessels were not equipped with _proactive_ armaments, but only by a War-Yacht such as the one he had arrived aboard...

Or watched a Dark Lord of the Sith depart upon.

There was a sudden commotion from the city. The Slavers were close now. Very close. It was only a matter of time before they breached its walls and killed all the inhabitants who put up resistance.

They would target the very young and women, killing the old. If possible they would put restraining shackles on muscular young males which could prove highly valuable, but it was more likely that they would kill these outright.

They were very efficient these Slavers, if you could stomach looking at things a certain way.

"Hey Fint, you seeing that?"

Trust Hexs's acute Mandalorian DNA to pick up on danger before even a Jedi Knight's senses caught on.

"I don't like the look of this," Something was wrong. The native warriors were streaming out of their encampment. That in itself was not so unusual, it was in life's nature to put up a stirring defence. But the Force was trying to tell him something. The discomfort he had felt on the journey so far had been leading up to this moment, or to the sequence of moments that would come after this one. He could not tell.

"It is definitely going to be a slaughter, check out the fancy armaments," Mexes thought he was agreeing with his partner. The natives were armed lightly with small blades and hand held projectiles...

But the way they leaped over the walls clad only in leather and oxidized metal could not be natural.

Everything crystallized in Finton's mind.

"Hex... this is a standard grav world right?" he asked. The leaping natives were humanoid, although under their battle garments it was hard to be certain they were all baseline human.

"Fuck that's right... Two minutes till contact. Our guys are gonna engage in seconds, I don't have voice com with the buggers. You have one'dem feelins but relax alright? This could still be a wash-ou, OH SHIT!"

Oh shit was right.

The natives had slammed into the first group of warriors and a pirouetting orgy of death ensued.

Now he understood how he had missed it. All the native warriors, inhumanely strong and fast, as they ripped out throats, shattered bones, and shoved their archaic knives through by comparison highly advanced armor, were using the force in someway. The effects were prominent and sometimes astonishing to witness, the _doing _was subtle.

All of them.

Multitudes.

It was hard to explain the feeling, but to his perceptions they were like insubstantial shadows that flitted in and out of connection with the Force. He did not understand how it was possible, but he got the distinct impression that many of them could draw deeply on its power.

His mind yawned, stretching for inspiration as all the elements and creatures out of nightmare took to the battlefield.

And this was _**just one **_population center.

"This is bad. This is really, really, really bad."

"Bad? Fint my eyes are showing me some really weird shit, and I think the advance group is all gone. How is this possible? Are they Jedi? Fuck we gotta bug out, I count four on us," Mexes was a whirl now even as he spoke. No time for surprise or fear, rifle to firing position in one smooth action, after the barest delay a single shot.

He aimed for center of mass and his shot counted, sending the native warrior - a she Fint noted - pitching to the ground.

Something told Finton he needed to have his Lightsaber in his hand, as soon as possible.

"I'm following, let's go," he said as Mexes impatiently slapped him on his back armor.

The natives had already consumed the first group of mercenaries. Now many of them headed directly for the ships, though to what purpose Finton could not guess, while others commenced work on what remained of the second batch of slavers.

three of the natives pursued them.

* * *

><p>Because his elemental affinities swung towards the destructive and cutting arts of Fire and Wind Asuma had found himself with little to do in the immediate fall-out of the extraterrestrial attack.<p>

Even though the destruction had been wrought much too rapidly for anyone to respond to, and in a manner that they had no defence against, everything that had transpired caused a roaring anger in Asuma that he had rarely felt. One that was begging for some kind of release.

Just when they were starting to get accustomed to how bad things were the situation descended into chaos as more futuristic vessels appeared.

The civilians, whom a few Shinobi were attempting to herd into safety zones, displayed their craven nature hurtling about the place and causing more confusion.

They could not help it of course, and he could not truly blame them, but a part of Asuma knew that the anger in him was only stirred by their wailing.

It was such a blatant reminder of everything that they had just lost, and the danger they still faced.

Thankfully the incoming enemy ships did not fire upon the city again. Already the Shinobi in him, and in all of them he supposed, was judging the difference between this ship and the previous.

Now that they had all been exposed to a new reality they were able to process it faster than most pre-space societies.

In a way the Shinobi had known about things like this. Or at least about the potential for it. For centuries part of the deal that bound Hidden Village to Elemental Nation was an unspoken of accord to collectively suppress all technologies that could irrevocably alter the land's balance of power.

The Shinobi were, of course, well-suited to this task - assassinations being prime trade-goods.

Through their contact with such technological types Shinobi had gained enough know how that culturally they were less shocked by events than say... your average 19th century Englishman.

That of Asuma which came from his father - that core which loved the intricacies of developing new Jutsu, and was at home with the pure _theory _of Shinobidom, was already considering ways in which to defend urban centers from the kind of assault Konoha had just been subjected to.

A part of him already grasped the bare truth of the situation. The gates of hell had been opened and more invaders could come at any moment. At any rate, as Shinobi, they would most definitely seek their revenge.

He had been drawn inexorably towards the walls as he had watched the beings land. Soon enough, trickles of them began to emerge from their constructions.

Asuma was among the first Shinobi over the walls.

The anger in him had found an outlet, but he was still the son of the Third Hokage, there was a definite purpose to his hurried steps.

They had to secure the invader's vessels at any cost, without them they would have no hope of extracting retribution within their lifetimes.

The will of Fire burned with a phoenix's intensity inside, and in this very moment he was the weapon forged to draw its enemies blood.

His structured mind was already organizing data, his brothers and sisters were with him, wordlessly reflecting his own fury through their battle poise and hurried steps.

Flights of throwing stars and kunai were flung at the enemy.

The uneducated attackers no doubt thought that the metal waves of sharp implements was timed to some unseen signal, but then they did not understand that for Shinobi none was needed. They could not comprehend the discipline of their craft.

They did not realize that they were something far more than a primitive army.

When contrasting the military doctrines of the enlightened galaxy and lonely up-till-now isolated Terra one realizes a sole fact.

There is no such thing as a Shinobi grunt. Even Genins are trained to think as most cultures generals do, with their very body serving as army.

Without reflecting on the act Asuma had already unsheathed his twin trench knives. Flying Swallow, the technique whereby he charged them to razor sharp sword points of chakra was already in play, brought to being by long ease and practice.

Tendrils of energy flashed from the weapons in the enemies hands. barking coughs of light obviously intended for use against personnel, but no doubt related to the weapon that had destroyed much of The Leaf.

Instinctively he judged and moved, coming into range alongside his compatriots. It was the Genin and Chuunin who suffered most in those initial moments of adaptation, and too many of them fell to the burning rays of croustillant energy.

But others survived, Asuma amongst them, and those others waded in amongst the enemies ranks - scattering them, and destroying.

The valuable knowledge they gained in those first brief encounters with beings from other worlds would be distilled and analyzed to the very minutiae for the benefit of the generations to come, but for the moment all there was was the killing.

* * *

><p>They hounded them like dogs who had evolved to hunt in the forests, darting through the treetops like crazed dervishes as they flung killing weapons down at them and caused blossoms of fire to sprout from nothing before their eyes, and fists of water to be formed and sent crashing at them through the forest cover.<p>

They must not have been as many as he first supposed, Fint realized as he poured liquid lightning back at his foes. The Viovacor made rifle spat plasma that was very similar in consistency to that which thrummed from his Lightsaber, though of course it was not the same.

Still the weapon caused considerable carnage and set fire to much of the shrubbery and in some places its acidic nature scarred the earth.

Yet Fint felt a strange sense of comeuppance as they put up a fighting retreat, heading for the safety of their ship and the cosmos. he felt for once what it was like to be 'normal' and face a Jedi, or similar force sensitive.

Although he and Hex were anything but normal.

Fint was straining his precognitive senses to the utmost, and using this ability to lay down efficient lines of fire, he avoided overt uses of the force and his concealed Lightsaber. One of the three attacking them had disappeared at some point. He had been wearing white robes, and should have been easy to track amongst all the green, but he had vanished utterly.

Although Hex on the other hand was Mandalorian born, he had probably noticed before Fint. Clad in his Beskar'gam and sending his fire right at the attacking natives, predicting their motions and forcing them to scurry away from the retreating forms of the pair of them, though he was yet to score a telling blow.

The armor Mexes wore had been passed down over eight generations. This fact was no doubt a foreboding one, as each owner would have maximized the armor's capabilities in his own distinctive way.

Perhaps to prove him right, or perhaps the force had so deeply wrapped itself around Fint at the height of battle that his own thoughts mirrored reality, vents of flame opened up out of the back of Mexes suit and his partner was propelled into the skies on wings of fire.

Mexes had dropped his rifle, and Fint followed suit knowing what came next. He began a headlong sprint for their ship, but something told him he still had to prepare himself.

The reason why Mexes had discarded his gun became clear as nozzles opened out on his shoulders and wrist mounted rockets armed themselves. From the sky he set ablaze a swathe of the forest before their pursuers that was so huge the action sent a ringing pang of loss through Fint's consciousness.

"Get to the ship" Mexes iron voice crackled to reach him over their linked communications.

"Ahyo," he said, immediately beginning to unstrap the armor around his left thigh even as he ran for safety.

He heard the dull boom of Hex's jetpack motoring him towards the ridge they had touched down alongside.

_We've been lucky to discover what they can do and stay unscathed, but now that we do know I can't take any risks. Sorry friend, but I think you would understand if I said we can deal with the uncomfortable truth of me being a fuckin Knight and all later._

* * *

><p>There were two beings blocking his access to the first ship.<p>

The first one was all squat and wiry muscle underneath leathery skin the same colour as one of Guy's obscene green spandex outfits. This one Asuma killed with a simple thrust into the armpit, the almost invisible blade of his Trench Knife piercing through long before the creature was aware of the danger.

The second one had long writhing tentacles growing out the back of its head. It tried to take advantage of his momentary encumberance with its dead companion and blasted at him with its deathstick. He leapt into the air before the bolts had even begun to flash out of the weapon's nozzle and speared the chakra point of his other knife deep into its throat, channelling his energies to cover the extra distance.

His fellow Shinobi had quickly realized his intentions, and another group was already headed for the second ship.

Here there were faces besides him that he knew and some that were unknown to him. They were all united to a common purpose.

They were about to enter when he signalled a halt, there was a Jutsu he would like to perform first.

He formed the stance and necessary seals, breathing out the name of his signature technique.

A moment passed before a sharp wind, made visible by dust, began to build in front of him. The air currents tumbled as if inhabited by a malicious djinn, and then after another instant a screaming wave of razor gales streamed into the passageway ahead of them.

Most of the screams from those who had lain in ambush were drowned out by the rushing wave of his **Fūton: Fūjin no Jutsu**, a few carried through to the ninja and they knew that the enemy had been banking on such a plan. After that it was just a matter of killing.

When it was all over Asuma stood in a central chamber that looked to be some sort of command structure, though he wasn't even allowing his mind to process the details of what he saw. That would come later, for the moment all there was to do was ensuring the death of every single invader who had set foot on the world.

Suddenly there was a slight commotion at the entrance to the room from which he was organizing the final attempts to seek out still alive aboard.

Guy came through the door, his tall muscled frame sodden with sweat, the vibrant energy that usually pasted a smile on his face turned to rage at the desecration of his beloved Leaf.

"Asuma! There was another ship. Like the one that attacked the city. The Hokage has asked all Jonin to converge on the location, its an S-rank. Lord Hiashi has already engaged the enemy, the Chuunin who returned to report says that these ones are more skilled."

"Immediately," Asuma replied. He spotted a pair of Chuunin he knew by the names of Kotetsu and Izumo. "You two, go find Hatake Kakashi. Spread the Hokage's message to all Jonin that you see engaging the enemy." Guy's face was red from the exertion of keeping three of the nine gates constantly open. There was no room for delay or merriment in his stony expression

"Let's go," Asuma said, matching action to words.

* * *

><p>This time he had his Lightsaber firmly in hand as he rushed through the forest, but no matter how he leapt the blocking boulders and fallen tree shafts in his path there was no way he could hope to reach the ship before Mexes.<p>

Which wasn't so great because the Force was telling him, quite insistently, that something terrible was about to happen.

Now.

He tried his best however, and it was with dismay that just as he reached the last overhang of forest-land before their little sheltering landing space under a ridge and beside a dry stream-bed he heard the cacophony of Hex's assault rifle.

He leapt the last ten meters and came out unto the dry turf of the stream-bed in a roll.

He rose with ignited Lightsaber to face a battle out of his nightmares.

Mexes buzzed around in the sky like an enraged hornet, sending tongues of lazer fire at a figure below him.

_There is another one of THEM?_

Fint was momentarily stunned by the sight of the pale skinned Zabrak Sith Lord nonchalantly batting away Hex's efforts with a blood red Lightsaber, his dark robes all aswirl.

"You're one of THEM!" Mexes was likewise stunned and for an instant it looked like he did not know who to shoot.

"Ah! the Jedi! What has been keeping you? It's just about time to deal the cards for the little game I have planned!" The Sith Lord had a high pitched voice that was nonetheless chillingly evil. He gobbled up the distance between Fint and himself and there was such a clash of Lightsabers that Mexes could not have gotten a clean shot even if he made up his mind as to a target.

_Duck, side stroke- no he will mirror me, wait for the counter, dang he saw through that, thrust! _

Combat between two wielders of the Force bearing Lightsabers was as much a question of who could successfully out 'Force guess' who as it was a question of swordsmanship.

Still his enemy was skilled, and Fint was forced to take unplanned steps backwards when the Zabrak aimed a low swipe across his ankles. He tried to counter with a Force push was again countered as his enemy preempted him and used a wave of darkside energy to grasp for his throat.

He annulled this attack with a swipe of his hand but the Sith Lord was already on him slashing and hacking wildly but with perfect form as he descended into a berserker rage.

The calm was on Fint now as well and he regained his equilibrium.

These moments were what the Sith and Jedi both secretly lived for, for in the clash of their arms the eternal mystery of the Force was accomplished; the snake eating its own tail.

He managed to give Mexes an opening by seducing the Sith into overreaching a particular strike, and then sending the elbow of his other hand to crash into the man's face even as their crossed swords hissed and sparked.

The Sith could not help but stumble, and Fint quickly ducked aside as Mexes took aim and struck true, sending lances down that should have pinned the man.

Still the Sith fought on and his power seemed to only grown with his rage. He stuck up one hand and absorbed three bolts of pure energy before bringing his Lightsaber back into defensive play.

A sharp wail of danger, Fint began to sprint.

The Dark Lord thrust the hand that had absorbed the blaster bolt up at Mexes... Consuming lightning licked up at his friend, wrapping him in their static embrace. Mexes began to convulse as the energy took ahold of him, in a matter of seconds his jetpack shorted out, but though he began to crash to land the darklord kept the stream focused on him.

Fint shoulder tackled him just in time.

His Lightsaber went flying out of his hand and this inspired him. He used the Force to push the surprised Dark Lord's own weapon away as they both fell heavily to the ground. He heard Mexes heave a pained groan and joy surged up within him at the revelation that Hex was alive.

"Jedi rodent! I'll"

Even as the Dark Lord began to snarl there was a sudden and distinctive crash as hundreds of the metal knives favoured by the natives began to pin cushion the ground around them.

_Our ship is right __**There!**_

All three of them on the ground, Mexes because he couldn't move, held still.

They could see the natives now and there were at least a hundred of them in the trees, on the ridge, even on the dry river-bed itself he now noticed.

These people could be so invisible when they wanted to be.

There was a man of average height with a bushy beard that covered his whole face smoking.

He threw the cigarette at the floor in-front of them and said a quick stream of sentences before gesturing calmly.

"He say's we are now their only prisoners, since they killed everyone else when the heat of battle was upon them, and that they shall restrain us and take us for further questioning."

Finton had almost forgotten he was entangled on the floor with a Sith Lord.

"I told you I had a little game planned," the Zabrak positively leered.

**A/N**

Hope you enjoyed and please review


	4. Chapter 4: Captivity

**SHGS - Chapter Five: The Code of the Sith**

**Disclaimer: I do not own, or profit from Naruto or Star Wars and all associated media. **

**A/N**

"I'm pleased with the viewing numbers so far though more follows and comments would be nice. Think of it as alerting other users who may like what you do to the fact that there is a good story here. Enjoy and check out my other story DAIQ"

**- Darklighter**

"_Thoughts"_

"Speech"

"_**Abnormal sentient thoughts"**_

"**Abnormal sentient speech"**

* * *

><p>Fint was surprised to see the Sith Lord let himself be taken into captivity without a fight. Though the odds were grim it would have been characteristic of the type to lash out at all around him.<p>

But the Zabrak had spoken of playing games. As the natives gathered around the fallen combatant he had smoothly disengaged himself from Fint's form.

He summoned his Lightsaber telekinetically and metal weapons flashed to hands as it spun in the air. The Zabrak uttered the harsh language of the people, his gestures supplicating, and there was a kind of stunned confusion. The Lightsaber floated - slowly- to spin in front of the white robed older man. Fint realized that this must be the being in command.

After the least perceptible of pauses the pale skinned man plucked the energy sword from the air, nonchalantly, as if he saw this kind of thing every day. The sun was almost completely gone, yet its rays still managed to glint of the warrior's distinguished oily hair.

By this time the Zabrak was speaking to the natives in their own tongue. His mouth uttered silky poison rapidly even as they set bindings on his hands.

Though they met his speech with silence they had no choice but to hear his words. As it was they did not bind his mouth and Fint marked this as ominous. After their experiences they would be thirsty for any kind of knowledge, positively burning for it.

Prudence had ensured that he had allowed the natives to man handle him. Poor Mexes didn't have much choice one way or the other.

As they secured his hands tightly down by his sides he saw several more investigating the ship. It was locked up tight, and nothing he had seen them do could grant them access without critically damaging its integrity. Still he worried.

The natives showed a distinct lack of fear, coupled with their anger this was not the best of signs.

They left the ship behind along with a few of the warriors. The white robed one seemed to be their commanding officer, but the one with a bushy beard did not exude the air of a subordinate.

He had to come to terms with his lack of information quickly, and if the ringing he still felt through the force was anything to go by, he had to do _now_.

Finton forced himself to assume the Jedi calm which clashed with his anxiety but was necessary for any sort of victory. As they walked he closed his eyes, he felt a gentle breeze as they all planted their feet methodically, the stirring air suited the calm after the rising action and killing superbly.

It was in the Jedi to guard even these moments dearly.

He could not expect these people to adapt to him despite all his technological accoutrements and galactic know-how. That much was obvious from the way they had all been easily subdued in the end. It was he who had to adapt to them.

_The first step of which would be learning their language._

He knew what he had to do. It was what he was trying to do even as he sought comfort in all encompassing Jedi calm and meditation.

Theran Force Listening.

Nowadays the various orders routinely taught this skill to knights who would be operating outside their spheres of influence, most especially to those who would be doing so covertly.

Even so the practice did not come to Finton easily, and he was finding it hard going in the moment. He had always felt more himself when he had Lightsaber in hand. Though he would be loathe to admit it he had far more facility with that than with the more refined aspects of the Jedi arts.

_At least it's a good day for a walk._

* * *

><p>Thirteen days after his abduction Naruto woke up. Instantly he realized that he was a new being. His encounter with Deimus had not faded with his comatose state, he had relived every moment of the Dark Lord's hot coal touch, and he had thoroughly absorbed the knowledge that had been imparted to him.<p>

He was not surprised to find himself alive, nor did he marvel at the liquid within which he was immersed.

He summoned the tank's rudimentary A.I to his mindscape with fumbling mental appendages. As he manipulated the primitive program and the Bacta began to wash away he felt an itch begin to develop at the base of his neck.

That was where the medical tank had implanted the interface that allowed him to command it and similar objects in the environment.

The knowledge transfer he had received from Lord Deimus had not included much history, and he was not entirely sure as to whether he could trust the alien's retelling of what information he had in any case, but he did know that the advent of neural interfaces such as these had led to diminished droid production over the centuries.

His body was still buoyed by the bacta. The viscous healing clutched at his skin and revitalized every cell in his body, still he was impatient for his feet to touch the tank's floor so that he could exit the contraption altogether.

Despite his close knowledge of what Deimus claimed to be, Lord of the Sith and proprietor Naruto's very life, he felt a thrill at their imminent meeting.

He did not pause to consider that the very same being who had just ripped out half of his core could very well 'heal' that gaping wound with sentiments and powerful forces design to draw him close and bind him.

Finally the bacta had receded enough for the tank to release him. Its face opened with a hiss and many beeps as the last of the gooey fluid drained out from between his toes.

He would have expected the medical bay of any vessel to be a brilliant white but it seemed that Deimus was one for sticking to a particular theme. The lights were a lurid blend of yellow and green while the walls and machinery was all a deep brownish red colour that contrasted harshly with the overhanging lights.

There were many questions Naruto asked himself as he pulled on the dark brown form-suit.

There were two portals out of the room and neither one was marked. Not so surprising as any who lived on this ship did so under the sufferance of a Sith Lord.

_And what exactly is a Sith Lord?_

He did not wonder about how he knew what a form-suit was. If he did that then he would have to consider every little mundane thing. Rather he tried to understand why he knew that Deimus was a Sith Lord, and that Traya was Sith, but Deimus had not seen fit to impart knowledge of what exactly a Sith _was._

There were many gaps in his 'education' such as this and his mind worried away at them. This also perturbed him because it seemed as if whatever Deimus had done to him had tampered with his very maturity. He felt years older than he was and he didn't understand how it could be so.

As if she had been waiting for him to get dressed Traya came into the room through the door he guessed led towards Deimus's private chambers. The suit he was wearing was more comfortable than anything he had ever put on in his life, yet the lack of colour depressed him. As if it was even possible for him to be any more befuddled inside.

"So? What are you just standing there for? I'm rather surprised that you are still alive considering that he actually," here she shuddered, "dipped into you like that. He's only ever spoken to me and even then I feel like there is poison flooding my neurons." she stopped speaking abruptly. Naruto supposed it was because this was the part where she asked 'how are you holding up?'

"I'm alive thanks," an uncharacteristic smirk came to his lips. "I was actually hoping that Deimus and I could talk more."

"Since you made it through that examination I should probably tell you. Don't ever refer to the Dark Lord like that in my presence again. He could kill me for failing to end you since you show such blatant disrespect," Traya said.

"Well there is a lot I still don't know," Naruto gestured expansively. "You can't expect me to just up out of my city and then know how to address every galactic being that I encounter."

"Oh? But I can expect you to speak Basic so flawlessly?" she smirked as he realized that they were not conversing in his native tongue. "Adapt," she began to walk away, forcing him to follow. "Do so quickly. Knowledge is power and you should be grateful for that which you have been given, and even more grateful that I now have to chaperone you... apprentice."

"And what about Dei- what about the Dark Lord?" Naruto asked as they passed through the way from which she had initially emerged.

"You won't see him for years, and then only if you survive." Even walking behind her as he was Naruto felt her hesitation. "We have been on my home planet for three days now. Once we leave this ship master will not be staying."

"And wha-"

She rounded on him before he could finish the question. Invisible arms grasped his waist and hoisted him into the air and Traya slipped forward, pinning him uncomfortably to the bulkhead with her elbow settled in the crook formed by his chin and neck.

"No. More. Questions. Understand?"

He did his best to form a nod though the going was difficult with the uncomfortable weight of her against him.

"Good, I hate pestering. As far as you are concerned, I am your master now," she said as she let him go.

He rubbed his neck as he followed her. It chafed for a bit but she showed no concern as she walked ahead.

The fact that he was alive meant that his death would displease Deimus, and she would not want to do that. She had seen that there had been no fear in his eyes when she had pinned him, and he wondered if that unsettled her in the slightest.

As he stepped after her Naruto realized that he was on the adventure of a lifetime, and as they set foot outside the ship this was confirmed by the pall grey overcast and stirring wind that would have rustled his cloak to oblivion had he been wearing one.

"Looks like it's about to rain," Traya commented drily.

This was patently true, and obese globs of water justified her words as they began to serenely plummet from the sky.

"Welcome to Yanibar."

* * *

><p><strong>Two days after the partial destruction of Konoha.<strong>

Kakashi had no idea what to think. None of the Jounin in the room particularly knew what to think, or do, except for Special Jounin Ibiki in the corner. From his quiet demeanour and the gleam in his eyes Kakashi could tell he couldn't wait till the captives were inevitably handed into his tender loving care.

Hiashi-sama and Asuma had captured three of the extraterrestrials. They were currently locked deep in the dungeons of the Tower, and they were fettered with chakra draining metal and clay.

Clustered around their pitiful forms outside the cell were twenty Jounin plus Ibiki. The Hokage stood at their rough head, and he reigned over the silence. Because he held no faith in the man Kakashi had long since noted Danzo lurking in a cluster of 'his' men.

Word of what had happened was already spreading, and no doubt discussions involving all the Hidden Villages, the first in recorded memory, would soon ensue.

Konoha had gained and prospered only through the quick thinking of Asuma who had quickly organized efforts to capture the invader's vessels without destroying them, just as Hiashi had organized efforts to secure their captives.

Kakashi shook his head minutely. All of the above had happened while he had been lost in an uncharacteristic berserk rage.

He had never figured that an event could so rock his life that he wouldn't be involved at the heart of Konoha's _productive _response to calamity, but that he would lose himself like any number of the Chuunin and Jounin that had followed his lead in killing without a purpose.

He was thankful for the many level heads with which Konoha was blessed.

"So... Danzo. You would have me release the one that calls himself a Zabrak? Exclude him from Ibiki's affections... for the moment?" The Hokage addressed the old codger, but one got the sense that his words were pitched to the room entire.

"Only because he has such a facility with our language," Danzo said smoothly, "and only because he is the only one that has been honest with us."

Try as he might Kakashi couldn't fault Danzo on that point. The human who had wielded the same kind of energy sword as was now in Hiashi-sama's possession had suddenly gained a rudimentary knowledge of their language the night of his capture.

This had been a good time to test out the assurances of the Zabrak, who had claimed that the security features of the sets of headgear, that were the only plausible mechanisms for piloting the foreign vessels, would fry the brains of any unversed Shinobi who put them on.

The human, who called himself a 'Jedi' had by contrast been very coy when the subject of space flight came up. It had only taken the life of one brazen Genin to verify who was willing to cooperate.

"There is truth in your words," the Hokage finally said. For some reason Kakashi could not quite understand he seemed hesitant to trust the Zabrak. "It would be good to have something to show the arriving delegations apart from the three ships."

Kakashi supposed he could see the sense in that, it would do them no good to put their faith in one with such a loose tongue.

Yet they all could tell that there were some subjects the Zabrak would not address, such as how long he had been on their planet, or even who he was. This selective reticence had gained him much currency on the Shinobi side. Shinobi were used to divulging every secret except the one that truly mattered, and they unconsciously enjoyed his mind games.

"Yet I think he could still do with a _little _time with Ibiki," the Hokage decided as he turned to go. "you never know what our special Jounin will root out."

* * *

><p>"You move like a girl! Hurry up, we're almost there."<p>

Naruto could barely see Traya's shrouded form lumbering ahead as her boots sloshed the rising water with each step. They had arrived in the middle of a rainstorm, Traya had glanced to the heavens and stated that it would be a small one by the summer's standards, Naruto was only now realizing that you couldn't trust the weather judgement of a Yanibar native.

"Almost where?" he asked. Traya had given him a cloak to throw over his form-suit when the rain had started in earnest, still, he was soaked through to the bone.

"Almost at the place where I used to live," she replied.

Traya had the edge of her coat raised just below her eyes to take the brunt of the spitting rain, but that was the only concession she made to its power. She strode with a straight back, even through the murky haze created by the plummeting raindrops one could tell that much from her darkened outline.

The world around them however had made many a concession to the weather.

The vegetation was sparse, what trees such as there were had evolved to be willowy and tough - able to bend with the storming winds. It was impossible to see more than two hundred meters in the deluge, and the land's surface had some of the slick feel of limestone. Here and there naturally forming porous rock structures were visible, this was where a lot of the excess water sloughed off the land to join Yanibar's vast subterranean rivers. Despite the appearance of chaotic nature out of control Yanibar's weather system was self-correcting.

Finally, after it seemed as if they had been travelling for an age, Naruto glimpsed a ramshackle structure that would not have been out of place on his home planet. It was sheltered in the recess of a copse, they had long since entered the one of the sparse jokes that Yanibar tagged 'forest', and he would have missed it if Traya's tracks did not lead directly to its front.

She had left the door open, and when he walked in she was busy in the corner, tapping her fingers against the wooden slats that comprised the far wall. The habitation was completely bare of any furnishings. It was a dark, open, and dank space.

"So this is it?" Naruto spoke as he drew back the cowl covering his face, "It isn't much," he said doubtfully as his eyes darted around, taking in the lack of... anything.

"Shut up for a second," Traya's murmured. She was sunk deep in concentration.

"I can't believe I can't... Ah! here!" she said in triumph as she found the slat she was looking for. It sank into the wall with her touch. There was a click and then silence, before a teeth-rattling grinding sound could be heard, it seemed to be coming from the building's very foundations.

Naruto felt the vibrations build until the floorboards under his own feet seemed to be shaking. Wisely he began to inch back. Traya had since circled around him to close the front door which he had left open. She laid a hand on his shoulder and he stilled.

They both watched as the central area began to sink into the ground. Very soon a spiraling staircase became evident. The steps were made of stone, and they showed no sign of recent use.

"Follow me," Traya said.

Just looking at her he began to realize that for all her ferocity she was young as he was. Despite her best efforts to hide it, her Master's vanishing act had worn thin on her. Her eyes had been wild since it became just the two of them, and she gave many unnecessary commands.

Hours later they had both eaten. Traya had assured him that his meals would not come so easily in the future, though she had said that she would teach him to hunt for what he needed.

Now they were seated on the floor with folded legs across from each other. Traya had set black candles to illuminate the room in an order that held to no rhyme or reason, the cylinders were planted firmly in floor boards for their wax to drip.

Naruto guessed that Traya's real home extended beyond the copse in which her hut stood quite a distance, though he could not be sure.

Although nowhere near as bare as the hut the layout and decoration was still frighteningly utilitarian.

Traya had wordlessly set a steaming mug betwixt them when she had seated herself. Afterwards she had closed her eyes in meditation, blanking him out completely.

He had soon tired of fidgeting, and his legs ached. Initially the cloying scent of the black candles caused revulsion to rise up within him, eventually however he grew used to the smell. He nose detected sage and acidic citrus in odour. He had closed his eyes without realization, and was truly shocked out of his reverie when Traya began to intone.

"_Nwûl tash._

_Dzwol shâsotkun._

_Shâsotjontû châtsatul nu tyûk._

_Tyûkjontû châtsatul nu midwan._

_Midwanjontû châtsatul nu asha._

_Ashajontû kotswinot itsu nuyak._

_Wonoksh Qyâsik nun."_

The power of the sibilant language stretched over him. His mind grasped for understanding where there was none to be found.

"Drink," her voice, normally coloured by passion, had lost all emotion. Naruto found himself obeying without hesitation.

He raised the glass, which now that he thought on it, was obviously meant for his consumption.

He expected the liquid to be biting, but the nectar was cool and sweet as it sloshed down his throat. He greedily drained it down, and was still revelling in its taste when his fingers went numb and the cup went clattering from his fingers.

Suddenly it was hard to maintain his cross legged posture. He felt his body slipping, and then it was gone. The situation evolved at a rapid clip as his mind detached.

He was not in Nirvana, but he was close.

"Look to your life if you wish to understand the way of the Sith," Traya was not herself. He had a dim sense of her fine hair rising to buffet her face as power flooded the room.

This did not cause his mind any alarm as it regarded proceedings. He had no wish to answer her. Indeed her words required no answer. He looked instinctively instead to the phrases she had uttered earlier, he sought understanding.

"_Nwûl tash._

_Dzwol shâsotkun," _Traya's voice whispered to him unbidden, and he knew.

_Peace is a lie. There is only passion. _In his state of total awareness, the memories came.

The boys who had only recently chased him for nothing. Beaten him for nothing. Driven by their own emotions, which to him, he now realized, were worth nothing. How could such a universe have peace?

"_Shâsotjontû châtsatul nu tyûk."_

_Through passion, I gain strength. _But there were still things he cared about, his own passions. A new vista opened up before him and he could see it clearly now. If he had possession of his body he would have clenched his fists as he came to know that he would never make the same mistake again. The passions of those boys, and the countless others who had slighted him in ways great or small, would catalyze his own rise to a position of dominance. His own assumption of strength.

"_Tyûkjontû châtsatul nu midwan."_

_Through strength, I gain power. _And when he had strength he would have power. The power even to come back to Konoha in judgement, if he so wished it, but in his state of clarity the part of Naruto that was Naruto knew that he would never do this. He was beyond them. The rage they had inspired would fuel him to galactic heights that dwarfed their petty concerns, and that would serve nicely as his revenge.

"_Midwanjontû châtsatul nu asha."_

_Through power, I gain victory. _With power came conquest. There were those who would oppose even his rise, such as, he realized belatedly, his current Master.

"_Ashajontû kotswinot itsu nuyak."_

_Through victory, my chains are broken. _But the conquest would be worth it for victory was the prize. And what was victory? The absence of the chains that had bound his life. Chains to Konoha and to Terra. Even the chains that bound him to Traya and Deimus. No matter how grateful he was if they stood in his way then even they would have to go.

A small part of Naruto balked at this. Especially at the thought of facing Traya who he was grudgingly beginning to admire. Yet even that conflict would be worth it, for the ancient words of the last sentence spoke clearly to him as he touched the very same wellspring of power that enabled Traya and Deimus to perform feats unimagined.

It was so different from Chakra. It was so _pure._

_The Force shall free me._

* * *

><p><strong>Konoha, Terra<strong>

**One week after first contact.**

**The Hokage's office.**

His esteemed excellence, the Lord of the Fire Country, breaching all precedent, was seated in the Hokage's office.

He was a youngish man, newly come to power after his father had passed under a languishing disease.

He knew what he wanted and how to get it, while the extraterrestrial invasion had caused insurmountable grief, he had already manipulated the crisis into an unheard of pact that would unite the Fire and the Lightning in war. Depending on how things panned out the other nations would line up to be dominated like bowling pins.

"The Shinobi from the Cloud will be along shortly to collect the ship we have pledged them," Lord Fire said.

Sarutobi hated the acquiescence evident in his short nod.

"Very good," the Fire Lord's voice softened, "I understand it must be hard for you, with us having to cooperate with the Cloud Shinobi, but Osvaldus was very insistent on the need for mutual cooperation in this endeavour. We are one planet afterall."

_One planet_ That was the phrase they were using the justify the sweeping changes that were enveloping the nations even as they spoke. Shinobi and the governance structure surrounding them acted quickly, and though the general populace may not know it, there was already a basic consensus on what would have to be done to safeguard the existence of the planet.

A consensus that Sarutobi illogically and vehemently opposed, following a line of reason that would make him a laughing-stock if it became public. His crystal-ball told him so.

"I understand the need for their cooperation in this matter," he said simply. "I do however question the continued involvement of this character... Osvaldus."

"Mm yes, yes these same concerns. I think Osvaldus has proved himself under Ibiki's tongues, not to mention the rudimentary skills he has taught our fledgling fliers," the Fire Lord's eyes were dismissive, and he began to stand to leave.

Sarutobi was persistent however.

"And what of the word of Fint and Mexes? The ones who name themselves Jedi and Mandalorian? They are at odds with Osvaldus, and name him Sith as if it were the gravest insult."

"We do not yet know the politics of the galaxy at large,' the Fire Lord said slowly, "it would be best if we remain shadowed and guard our own counsel, yet Osvaldus has only provided solid information so far. The others you speak of still refuse us access to the 'Battle-Yacht' which is key," there was finality in the Fire Lord's words.

Though he was young and brash he had enough gravitas and respect not to chastise Sarutobi, the senior statesman, but he had the same iron will as his father before him.

"Very well," Sarutobi said as he rose to escort him out, "Everything will be done as you say."

"Thank you Hokage-sama," the young lord's face crinkled into a smile as he embraced the older man, again breaking proper protocol. "You were always a close friend of my father. The state appreciates your wisdom during these exciting times!"

Later that night, wrapped up in the quilts that kept the cold away from his old joints while in bed, the dreams came to Sarutobi again.

He saw his home on fire. Not just Konoha, but the whole world. He watched from the heavens as great ships sent gouts of flame to boil the waters and sear the land, leaving nothing alive.

The visions came to him urgently now. He did not even require his crystal-ball, they came to him unfailingly in his sleep.

He faced them with trepidation yet still joyfully. In the world of his dreams he already knew what he must do, though he had not yet found the opportunity in the world of the waking.

He saw their faces, those who could save his world.

Kakashi and the alien Mexes.

The children, brightest sparks of all, Sasuke, Sakura, and Hinata.

If the prior visions heralding destruction had unmanned him, the faces of those whom he must rescue from what Terra was becoming steeled him.

With a smile on his face Sarutobi-sama, third Hokage of Konoha, slipped into a dreamless sleep.

* * *

><p><strong>AN**

"Laterz,"

**- Darklighter**


	5. Chapter 5: Intro to the Zeison Sha

**SHGS - Chapter Five: An introduction to the Zeison Sha**

**Disclaimer: I do not own, or profit, from Naruto, Star Wars, and all associated media. **

**A/N**

"I've edited the story a bit. Chapters two and three have been merged. Chapter four is now three, and chapter five is now four. Enjoy."

**- Darklighter**

"_Thoughts"_

"Speech"

"_**Abnormal sentient thoughts"**_

"**Abnormal sentient speech"**

* * *

><p><strong>Yanibar<strong>

When Naruto stood to face Traya his training saber was still gripped firmly in hand. This was an improvement over the past months.

Naruto was a born natural when it came to employing the Force. Over the seasons since Traya had touched his mind he had gained an iron hard mastery over the _control_ aspect of using his abilities, and was rapidly coming to terms with the powers under the _sense _umbrella.

One could sense this was not enough for Traya however, for she drilled him into the ground as the months flew and winter gave way to spring. After his awakening she had divided his days into segments of constant activity - saber training, force exercises, arcane texts, hunting, and of course taking care of any needs or whims that caught her fancy.

He only had time to himself to sleep, yet even then it was in snatches, and he rarely got three hours consistent.

His body became angular and hard as the training sank into his bones.

She brewed Sith potions that accelerated the onset of his puberty. The vile liquors made him long for the dream potion that had awakened him to the ways of the Sith. She had been true to her word and barely allowed him to subsist on the hut's meager winter stores. Instead she had used the harsh cold months to teach him how to hunt. He was inordinately pleased when spring arrived and the animals began to show themselves.

He always grinned, smirked, or smiled when he used the force, and he was doing the former now. Traya herself wore a look of satisfaction. Was it just him or was her chest heaving more than usual? Her eyes were wild at any rate, and her strawberry hair clung to her face in crinkled clumps where strands had come loose from their restraining tie.

"Saber still in hand? Come then bitch," Traya casually flourished her Lightsaber, tossing it from right hand to left, the brilliant beam cast dancing shadows on the slick limestone walls of the training cave.

A part of Naruto realized that he was training for life and death situations. They always fought in semi-darkness; they were guided only by the lights of their weapons. He sought to center himself.

Despite his long months of training the tip of his saber always wavered slightly before he struck - giving away his intentions.

This was an unexpected issue. From Traya's explanation the way of the fledgling Sith was always harder because use of emotions required a great will to exert control.

He used that will now.

She had been getting the better of him too often, and if he allowed the situation to persist any longer she would come to judge him to be weak.

He saw her eyes widen as he settled his stance, and the miniscule openings that had been in his form shrank away. He did not respond to her use of _Dun Moch, _but kept his carefree grin plastered on.

He settled deeper into the force. She had been treating him like a dog. He had been nursing the brutality of her methods over the months, but for the first time his anger steadied his hand and calmed his nerves.

This was part of what it meant to be Sith.

He felt a tug at his grip as Traya tried to rip his weapon out of his grasp. She had been using the Force to do so more regularly as his training progressed, but he was ready for her this time and casually deflected her attack with a mental tendril of his own.

He rushed in at her then taking two paces before ducking to the right. Naruto twisted his Lightsaber in a stabbing motion; he used the muscles of his right thigh, and the tough calluses on his balancing instep as he surged up at her from his half crouched stance.

She scrambled back and parried as he pitched forwards on his toes almost as if he was some kind of deadly ballerina.

He launched himself into the air from the impossible position; no doubt he used the Force to assist himself in doing so.

Traya followed his arced flight as he tumbled over her. She was ready for him when he landed. She met his blade with her own. Her fingers straining for purchase on the grip of her weapon as she parried and retaliated.

Still he forced her to cede the advantage.

A pattern of strikes followed. They both settled into the rhythm of their duel as muscles loosened fully, and sweat began to pour.

Traya scored him a glancing blow when his precognition abandoned him for a moment, and he miscued a block. His forearm throbbed where it had been touched by the stinging weapon, but he roared and used his considerable strength to drive their locked arms, and her, back across their dueling circle.

The muscles he had packed on drawing a bow to hunt scrawny game in the wintry outdoors, and under her training regime, served him well in that moment.

Yet Traya would not be bested by her apprentice. She called the Force to her aid as her feet approached the lines of the circle. The iron curtain of her will backed her up, and then began to push back against Naruto.

Belatedly he had also called on the Force - attempting a Force-push that would knock her out of the circle. But there had been a lapse of precious milliseconds before he his attempt to counter her power took hold.

He struggled against her for a couple of titanic seconds, but his will was still half trained, and she had only recently began to teach him how to use the Force to _alter _his environment.

He felt her mind inexorably grab ahold of him. He felt the contempt in her touch as she tried to casually fling him out of the circle.

He tumbled through the air, but he refused to allow her a complete victory. He employed the Force again; using it to cushion his fall as he landed on his feet.

Growling in frustration and deactivated his Lightsaber. Even in the darkness he could tell that one foot hung just outside of the marked training area.

"You _are_ improving," Traya said grudgingly.

She also deactivated her weapon, and it floated serenely to hang on her belt. She contacted the home A.I, so the system activated the lights in the cavern.

Training devices - mats, kettlebells, traditional weights, and assorted implements lay sprawled outside of the dueling circle. In the far corner, right next to the door that led out of the training complex was an old fashioned terminal; the kind that manifested a keyboard for operation, or even required physical keys.

This one was of the former variety, and it actually controlled all the systems in the house, for Traya's dojo also served as her bunker, and there was an escape hatch that led far away from the forest and to the surface in the event of calamity.

"But not quickly enough?" he asked as he followed her. Traya exited the training space brusquely, and she sat before the terminal she idly brushed back her still damp hair.

"No, not quickly enough," she said as her eyes scanned the now active screen before her. Naruto hovered by her seated position on the cuff of her shoulder. "But you will have to serve as you are."

Naruto's eyes also scanned the screen but he could make no sense of the symbols. Deimus had not imparted knowledge of the Sith language to him all those moons ago, and Traya had not seen fit to teach him.

"Serve for what?" his face bunched in consternation despite his efforts to school his expression. His fingers idly played with the hilt of his training saber now clipped to his form-suit. He did not doubt that she was reading a communication from Deimus. He only wished he could fathom the missive.

"Serve what rather," she said, "I don't think I have to tell you that my ends would be the answer."

"Yes but your ends to what?" Naruto persisted. His hand gripped down on the head of her chair. The days when she could bully him physically at whim were long gone. These days they both knew that he only obeyed because Naruto knew he still had much to learn, so he wished to feed his burgeoning power as efficiently as possible.

Traya on the other hand was eager to be off-planet so as to also continue her training with Deimus. Though Naruto did not know it she was rapidly running out of things to teach him, and he was inching closer to besting her in the dueling circle.

Her Master had known that she was not ready for an apprentice. More so she was not ready for _this _apprentice. In forcing stewardship over Naruto unto her he had also set in play a series of events that would force Traya to remain always on her toes.

"Every Sith Lord is powered by emotion, and by memories of prior wrongs. I think this was my Master's purpose in putting me here. If I can't wrap up the loose ends in my past then maybe I don't deserve to be Deimus's apprentice," she swiveled in her chair to face him. In the Dark Lord's absence they had both taken to using his given name.

"So that's what we're here for? Shouldn't be too hard then," Naruto cracked another cheshire smile. "what with me being here now and all."

Traya couldn't help but smile herself as she stood. She placed a hand on his cheek as she rose from the chair. The glittering false nails on her index and pinkie caressed his flesh and a soft gust of air whooshed from his lips.

She had learned _many _ways to keep her apprentice in hand. Especially ever since he begun to drink her tonics and start his transformation into a real man.

"But you haven't asked me who my enemy is dear apprentice," she whispered into his ear as his hand came to play deliberately with the piercing in her navel which dangled proud on her exposed midriff. Their bodies were pressed close now, and they would have hugged if it was in the Sith's nature to do such.

"Who wronged you _Master?_" he whispered back.

"The current leader of this planet's Force Adepts. _The Zeison Sha._"

* * *

><p><strong>Twenty days after the attack on Konoha which would come to be known on Terra in the coming years as: "The Unifying Skirmish."<strong>

Hyuuga Hinata was what you would call a shy girl. At ten years of age she had started at the academy slightly late although this was more due to the peaceful nature of the times, and not because she did not have potential.

She sat before a mirror in her room. She brushed out her long dark hair as deep white eyes gazed back at her. Though she would never speak the words aloud she was very proud of her hair. She loved the way it shined when she had it out like this, and the feel of it as she ran her fingers through, but she kept it bunched up and hidden in school. Hinata disliked attention far more than she loved her hair.

She and her classmates had all been stunned dumb during, and after the attack some twenty days ago. Luckily school had been in session at the time. The ninja academy was in the most secure part of town; right next to the nobility quarters where she lived. Everyone in her class had been accounted for except Naruto.

Naruto...

He had been missing for the span of a week before the attack. Everyone had just assumed he had been playing hooky as usual, and though Hinata had missed his presence in class she had little influence over his comings and goings.

Her father had kept her sister Hanabi, her cousin Neji, and she herself cloistered in the house during the week after the attack, and many other high ranking clans had done the suit.

He had become increasingly paranoid. He and some other senior Shinobi had put a lot of faith in one of the strangers. The only one who did not seem to have been a part of the attack. Still _everyone _in the village, even the children, had been shocked when the alliance with the Cloud was announced.

The two greatest nations in the land united to a common purpose. Albeit only for one, unspecified, mission. The hand of the stranger was apparent in the union, for he had refused to give only Konoha access to his knowledge of the galaxy, and the Cloud's ambassador had been quick to offer him asylum.

While the rest of the world speculated as to what that mission could be, and who the alien stranger was, Hinata was more interested in finding Naruto.

She had summoned enough courage to explore his house, and a few of the places where she had always seen him before. She had no luck in finding him. A part of her was not too surprised at this. Shinobi many times more seasoned than her fledgling self had tried and failed to locate him.

He was known to journey outside the walls; penetrating the thickets of forest, and skipping across slippery stones of the rivers and stream-beds. If he had been hurt while outside during the conflict then it could be weeks before they found his body. After two there were only a couple of Chuunin still given the permanent task of looking for him. Hinata knew this because she had checked to find out herself. The receptionist at the Hokage Tower's front desk had not been very cheerful, but she had atypically managed to wheedle the information out of her.

There was a knock at the door.

She started as her eyes reflexively glanced at the clock. 7.20 A.M. It was a bit early for her to start heading to the academy, and she had never needed reminding before.

"C-Come in," she said.

The door opened, and there stood a member of the branch. The green seal stamped on her forehead was only partially obscured by the kerchief that she had tied around her hair. She knew the middle-aged woman although she couldn't quite recall her name. She usually saw her at the entrance to the main gates.

Her job was to escort esteemed guests to the mansion.

"There is a messenger from the Hokage at the gates for you Hinata-sama," she said as she bowed. "he is a Jounin of the village, and you are to follow him instead of going to school today."

"T-thank you. Thank you very much," Hinata could not imagine what the Hokage would want with her, but the words tumbled forth.

"Should I inform your father?" the woman's eyes quested up to engage hers.

"N- No thank you. That won't be necessary," Hinata said as she ducked the woman's eyes. She could not imagine what trouble she was in, but she did not want her father knowing of it yet, plus she always felt ashamed when faced with the servitude of the branch members. "thank you."

The woman left, and Hinata was left with her thoughts as she got to her feet.

_What could the Hokage want with __**me**__?!_

She felt another panic attack coming along.

* * *

><p>Sakura had never met the tall Jounin who had come to pick her up from her home at an unholy hour in the morning. She was still bleary eyed, and had not had the time she traditionally took to apply her makeup before heading out for the academy. The Jounin found himself no higher in her estimation for the fact that he had cut short her morning ritual.<p>

He wore a mask that concealed the lower half of his face, and his forehead protector slung down to cover one eye. She wondered how he could possibly fight whilst his vision was impaired in such a manner.

He hadn't said much after picking her up. He seemed to have his nose permanently stuck in a small orange book. Sakura strained to get a glimpse of its title and cover, but he was actually quite tall, and she could not manage to do so.

All he had said was that they were going to the Hokage tower, and that he had to pick up two of her classmates. She began to understand why he had picked her up first when they left the middle-class districts, which had borne the brunt of the alien attack - and was where she lived, and they entered the expansive area where the wealthy Shinobi clans resided.

Their first stop was in a part of town that every Shinobi was familiar with. The Hyuuga complex was right next to the central training areas; only the Sarutobi clan manse abutted the parks in the same manner.

Sakura hung back as the Jounin engaged in a brief conversation with the matron at the gates. Her sharp brain was already mulling over the unknown reasons behind the Hokage's summons, and despite his blasé appearance she knew that the Jounin was similarly involved.

What could the Hokage want with a bunch of Genin during the most trying period of his reign?

They did not have to wait for long before Hinata eased out of the grounds.

Her shy classmate kept her head low was she walked past the entrance guards.

Possessed by a sudden empathy for her classmate Sakura walked quickly towards her, and embraced her in a hug.

"Good morning Hinata-chan. Did they tell you why they wanted us?"

Hinata seemed shocked at the sudden contact, but her face soon dissolved into a timid smile. They had never been the best of friends, yet the attack on the village had brought out the deep emotions everyone normally guarded close.

"N- No. No one has said anything to me," she suddenly seemed to notice the Jounin. She was facing him, and her eyes locked on the graphic on the face of his book. Sakura had the opportunity to see it for the first time, and her face turned beet red to match Hinata.

"W-who is that? W- W- What is that!" Hinata demanded as she struggled to shield her eyes. Her shyness was forgotten in the moment.

"I'm the guy who has to babysit you all for the morning, and this? This is a classic," the Jounin said as he peered at them from behind the explicit cover of his book. Snapping it shut he continued to look at them. "You can call me Kakashi."

"Come on," the Jounin gestured, "we have one more stop before I take you all to the tower, and this Z rank mission can finally be over."

* * *

><p>The gates of the Shinobi academy opened at 8am sharp.<p>

Sasuke had stuck to the same ritual in the two years since his brother had killed everyone that he had ever loved.

He woke up in the empty compound, which by law now belonged entirely to him, at 4.30 every day. He trained immediately upon rising for an hour and a half before eating. Afterwards he would shower and review the lessons of the previous day for thirty minutes, or he would begin to delve into one of the tomes that would serve as his evening reading after the school day, and evening training was done.

His only human contact outside of school was with the lawyer who took care of his estate, and the elderly couple who provided his meals and cleaning.

He always left himself fifteen minutes before class. He liked to arrive five minutes late. There was little the teachers could do since he was always top, and it helped to build his legend.

You can imagine his surprise upon leaving the compound on this morning to spy his dreaded fan girl Sakura. Alongside the blushing girl was another whose name eluded him for the moment.

He did know that she was extremely shy, and a Hyuuga, but he had never paid her much mind beforehand. He liked her because she did not fawn over him, and he had no desire to change that. If he opened up to her she could easily become another Ino/Sakura.

There was a ranked Shinobi with them. Sasuke's eyes widened slightly as he realized that the man was a Jounin.

"Don't just stand there, come with us," the Jounin said.

"Come with you to where?" he glanced at the girls, "class is about to start."

"They Hokage wants to see us," Sakura said. The majority of her blush had faded, but her voice still came out in a squeal.

"Why would he want to see us? Isn't there a crisis going on or something," Sasuke was well aware of the destruction that had been meted out on Konoha weeks ago. Perhaps because he had lived through the destruction of his entire clan; he had engaged in a sort of guilty pleasure as he spied the etchings of grief on the faces of random civilian, and Shinobi passers-by.

"Enough with the questions already... Jeez. Do you kids think I have nothing better to do with my morning. I'm already tired of shepherding you everywhere. Now that I have got you, Sasuke, we are going to the tower. When we get there you can ask the Hokage himself why he wants to see you so bad," the Jounin said.

His tone brooked no argument, so Sasuke fell into step besides the rest of them.

* * *

><p><strong>Yanibar: On the steps of the Zeison Sha temple. (Sha Kalan)<strong>

Naruto could not help but gaze in awe at the edifice before him. Divested of his training-saber, and of his form-suit which gave him away as an offworlder, he looked every part the country bumpkin as he stared in wonder at the majestic building.

Like most constructions on Yanibar the vast bulk of its mass no doubt stretched underground into subterranean caverns, but the Zeison Sha had built their temple with tender hands guided by gravitas such that the smooth lines recalled the Jedi temples of their ancestral memory.

Still the building was evolved to cope on Yanibar. Naruto's eyes began to make out the funnels which would channel the wind around the construction, and where the stinging rain would be guided to collect in huge troughs cut into the roof, so therefore leading off and away from the building.

It would be awhile till he saw Traya again.

He had a wistful vision of her face and the curve of her toned waist as he began the steep climb up the steps. There were several benefits to the growth stimulating potions she had begun feeding him over the winter; now a year and a half on Naruto knew a woman's touch, though he was yet to have full intercourse, and his shock of unruly blond hair gave the impression that he was over six feet tall.

He knew that the Zeison Sha would not take him for a tender eleven year old. This was ideal because there was no way that he would be able to hide his maturity from them. Traya had not taught him much about the subtle Sith arts of deception. In many ways she preferred to teach via baptism of fire.

The Zeison Sha were alert to his presence. No one had paid his cowled form any mind as he had struggled through the sparse crowd of the small city that had sprung up to serve the temple's needs, but now initiates and warriors began to flock down the steps.

They had cased the temple for a couple of weeks, but now Naruto was allowing his full presence in the Force to be felt; although he disguised the dark tint to his aura with techniques Traya had taught him for the purpose.

Still he noted the discblades which the warriors had firmly gripped.

The one that came to stand before him was a Twi'leck. He noted the Tan robes that the yellow being wore so reminiscent of the Jedi he had only spied in Holos. Though these people claimed to hate the Jedi they could not help but remained chained to the past they despised.

"Who are you?" the Twi'leck had a deep voice. He was one of the warriors who had his discblade unclasped. Although Naruto was not giving off the aura of a trained Force user, but rather that of an extremely talented neophyte he could practically taste the Twi'leck's fear. "What is your business here?"

"My name is Nathaniel Uzumate. I have a message for your leader from Mara Venton," there was a gasp from the few warriors who had gathered round him that was audible even over the ever present wind. He let tears spill from his cheeks. They had no idea that the hand he used to slick back his hair was slathered in onion juice. "She killed my Da. She says she isn't leaving the planet till your leader faces her in battle," at this point he let the brown sack he held fall to the ground.

The head of the isolated farmer Naruto had killed himself tumbled to the ground, and proceeded to bounce down the steps. The man would not be missed, and his blond hair and whiskered complimented the ruse they wished to play.

Right on cue Naruto crumpled to the tears and pressed his hands to his face. The onion juice was really doing its work.

"We better go inside," without looking up he knew that the yellow Twi'leck had sheathed his weapon, and had nothing but concern writ in his face.

Wordlessly he allowed the other warriors to bear his body up, and the Zeison Sha welcomed him into their home.

* * *

><p><strong>Twenty days after the attack on Konoha which would come to be known on Terra in the coming years as: "The Unifying Skirmish."<strong>

Mexes was sick and tired of Finton and his thrice damned 'Jedi Meditation.'

He paced like a caged... something or the other as he sought release for all the energy he had pent up inside. Occasionally his eyes would shoot daggers at his partner. The grizzled Knight sat cross legged in the center of the cell forcing Mexes to circle him. The scar evidence of the torture he had borne whilst Mexes recovered, without bacta, was the only barrier between the Mandalorian and his throat.

_A fucking Jedi Knight!_

Suddenly something unusual happened.

Mexes stopped his constant pacing, and Finton's eyes jerked wide as someone came into the dungeon. It was not feeding time, and their jailors were consistent.

"It's time," Finton said.

There was something in his voice that Mexes didn't like; a sense of foreboding and finality.

"Time for what _liar_?" he asked petulantly just as their visitor arrived.

It was one of the masked ones who called themselves A.N.B.U. There was no time for Finton to reply because the man began to speak immediately.

He ground his teeth in frustration as he waited for Finton to translate. He hated feeling so powerless.

"He says that the Hokage wants to see us," there was no surprise in his partner's voice. No doubt his 'Jedi' abilities were informing his every action. This was what enraged Mexes beyond anything else. How could he have been so blind?

"So let's go see the Hokage then," he said as the native opened the gate. Their captors hadn't seen fit to bind their hands. All they had done was divest them of their weapons and armor. Mexes supposed that their hosts couldn't be faulted for lack of confidence.

"Just be ready Jedi. I'm busting out of this place and getting to the ship first chance I get." he said.

"I'll be right behind you as always," Finton assured him, and he couldn't help but smile.

* * *

><p><strong>Konoha: The Hokage's Office<strong>

Sarutobi regarded the three children, and Jounin standing before him. It was a beautiful day to be setting momentous events in motion. That morning he had come to the Tower from his manse before anyone else as usual, and he had stood on the roof watching the city come to life.

These four were ever present in his crystal ball, and in his dreams. He had since sent his guards to fetch the two others who were instrumental.

The strangers cached in the dungeon.

He saw Kakashi's eyes widen as the foreigners came into the room. With a curt wave of his hand Sarutobi dismissed the A.N.B.U members. This was not for their ears.

"Kakashi, children, I would like you all to meet Jedi Knight Finton, and Mexes who is called a Mandalorian. I know you have seen them before Kakashi, but you haven't been properly introduced,"

"Hokage-sama... I don't understand," Kakashi began to protest as he glanced around wildly. It looked as if he would go bolting for the door, and help within the minute.

"Calm down Kakashi. I choose you for this because of the bond we share through the Fourth. Trust me," the Hokage said. There was an expression of pleading on his face that shocked all the Konoha natives. They were used to associating their leader with strength.

"It is a pleasure to meet you," the one the Hokage had introduced as a Jedi Knight held out his hand for Kakashi to shake. The Jounin hesitated before accepting the universal gesture.

The children had no clue why they had to be present for this. If the Hokage wanted to introduce the Jounin to the prisoners that was his prerogative, but as far as they were concerned they were surplus to requirements.

As he stood the Hokage seemed to notice their confusion.

"Children, Kakashi, I am sending you on the most important mission I have ever given anybody. I am asking you to leave your families and head for the galaxy with these men," he indicated the prisoners. Kakashi stood in shock while the Jedi Knight maintained his calm. It seemed as if his compatriot had not been following events, and the other rapidly began to speak to him in an efficient language.

However they both widened their eyes when the Hokage walked around his desk to open a cabinet. Strange items were contained inside; suits of metal, a small cylinder which went to the Jedi Knight, and a bulky cannon which the Mandalorian swung across his front when he had finished donning his armour.

"Hokage-sama!" Kakashi yelled losing all sense of decorum as dangerous prisoners armed themselves before his very eyes.

"Hold your peace Kakashi!" the Hokage raised his voice for the first time. "I am entrusting this to you because there is no one else. The rest of the village is too blind, and the world has put too much faith in Osvaldus. Already we forget the destruction that was wrought upon the land, yet I ask you. Is anyone considering _why _we are so important to the Zabrak, and does anyone truly know the path he is leading us down?

"From the little he has told us Naruto has fallen into the hands of a group of warriors known as the Sith," here Hinata interrupted with a gasp which was quickly forgotten by the spellbound Shinobi present.

"Finton here says that the Sith are corrupted, and that they use their power for evil. I say that I do not know who to trust, and so I am entrusting you children. I want the three of you to learn all that you can of the Jedi order since the other-side already has a piece. In my estimation Terra needs a voice in every camp, for the galaxy is a huge place.

"I give these children into your care Kakashi. It is up to your head to make sure that they never forget their roots, and where they have come from. There is no one else for this task, and it is a triple S rank," the Hokage said.

"There isn't any time for argument either," he added when he saw that Kakashi still burned to protest. Even Sasuke looked like he had swallowed a bad fish. Eventually the Jounin subsided however, and he settled with glaring at the two aliens amongst them.

The children were still too dumbfounded to speak. Sakura and Hinata immediately thought of their family's while Sasuke was filled with an insane rage. What about Itachi?

"Thank you Hokage-sama," Finton said before anyone else could speak. He had just finished engaging in a heated and lengthy conversation with the Mandalorian.

"Everything you have said is in accordance with what the Force has told me. Everything except for one tiny detail. I am not leaving the planet," the Jedi said.

It seemed as if everyone would start voicing their various complaints. Even the man's companion seemed to understand what he meant despite his lack of understanding when it came to their language.

However Finton silenced them all with an outraised palm. "The others will need a distraction if they are all to make it to the ship alive. The Force has told me this, and I surrender myself to its will entirely."

"How will you leave then?" Kakashi asked.

"I will not be leaving," Finton said, and he gave them a sad smile as he and the Hokage exchanged a knowing look.

The Hokage hastened to the bookshelf behind his desk. He caressed the spine of a particular tome and the obligatory escape route out of his office manifested itself.

"You better get going then."

* * *

><p><strong>The End. (Part One)<strong>

**A/N**

"Fear not DAIQ fans. That story is next in line for a couple of updates, I would much rather edit the bulk of chapters I wrote when I was younger first though so please bear with me during this 'messy' time,"

- Darklighter


	6. Chapter 6: Warrior of Sha Kalan

**SHGS - Chapter Six: Warrior of Sha Kalan**

**Disclaimer: I do not own, or profit, from Naruto , Star Wars, and all associated media. **

**A/N**

"If you did not notice the chapter reorganization that has taken place I suggest you read the chapter before this one first."

**- Darklighter**

"_Thoughts"_

"Speech"

"_**Abnormal sentient thoughts"**_

"**Abnormal sentient speech"**

* * *

><p><strong>Three years later<strong>

**Yanibar**

Naruto was a whirlwind as he and his brethren leaped across the dunes on the wind's wings.

The world was alive, and he had become an instrument of nature's will.

They had been put on the trail of their quarry by their leader. The woman his true Mistress hunted; High Priestess of the Zeison Sha. A groundbreaker unlike any that had come to the Zeison Sha before, for she could read the future in the wind swept sands of their home.

She was Traya's mother.

The smugglers they pursued could scarcely believe the chase; armed as he was with the Force Naruto did not feel a shred of sympathy for the beings.

At first he had found it difficult to conceal his dark nature whilst training with the Zeison Sha. They had taken him in out of consideration for his situation, but they clammed up at any mention of Mara.

He had played the ruse out as one seeking vengeance at first, and his tutors had attributed the slight slips in his mask that occurred to grief over his 'father.'

Eventually however he caught the hang of the Zeison philosophy. In their own way they were as scoured and hardboiled as their home, and as a result their abilities edged closer to the dark than to the light.

It took him a year to make that breakthrough. A year he spent clad in plain robes and, on the rare occasion he forayed outside of the temple complex, the light armor of the Zeison Sha initiate.

Afterwards his rise had been assured and rapid.

He led the pack now as they hunted the smugglers; nipping at their heels like a pack of wolves with blood scent in snout.

He wasn't in charge of this mission, yet his Master, the very same Twi'leck that had welcomed him to the temple, lagged just off of his shoulder.

This was not through any fault of the heavy set and pale warrior, but was simply on account of Naruto's speed.

No one in the temple could keep up with him during a windstorm.

The gusts of wind played across the land. Sometimes the invisible paths granted speed to their passage as they pursued the speeders, but there were just as many counter winds running parallel to their destination.

This did not matter to the Zeison Sha warriors. Every single one of them harnessed the winds into a jet of power that propelled in meter devouring leaps.

Naruto and others already had their discblades to hand. He had crafted the weapon himself spending long hours of the process.

The T-shaped grip was fashioned from Nacre. It was covered in a clear hard plastic which had been easy to come by, but the iridescent colors shone through the protective material.

Naruto remembered the day he had dived into the sea to find it. They had all thought him to be mad.

There had been a collective wail as his form had plummeted down towards the seas. The winds here were unpredictable, and on several occasions the malevolent gusts had tried to smash him against the cliff face. He had held his nerve and will however; waiting for the perfect air current; one that would send him flying far away to crash into the sea.

It arrived in the nick of time, and the rest was as they say... history.

The vibroblade fanned out of his weapon's grip. Its dull surface was standard, but the silvery vine of purified cortosis that was embedded within it rare and expensive.

Such valuable material was reserved for only the best warriors, but nobody could say Naruto hadn't earned it.

Not after what he had gone through just to earn the bloody grip.

He was almost within throwing range, and adrenalin began to flood his system. Naruto let out a wild whoop. He could barely restrain himself.

His vision tunneled as the slowest vehicle plunked firmly into his mental crosshairs.

It would only take one strike of his deadly blade to disable or destroy.

Man and discblade were already attuned, and all that remained was the throw. He located a friendly wind stream that would aid his control and brought it under his command. His blade writhed within his fist as if it were alive. He had filled it to the brim with Force energy.

When he threw the motion was almost casual, but the blade arced out with terrifying speed. It zoomed through the air in a semicircle trajectory. Naruto could see the lines of sparkling power that connected the blade to the target, and to Naruto himself.

As it crashed into the engine housing of the target Speeder he had already plotted its return path, and he altered his wind assisted bounds accordingly.

Naruto's Force energy protected the weapon, and lent it power, while the wicked curves of its gleaming blades rapidly ate through the protective housing.

The blade was still hot in his mind as he recalled it insistently. It shot out of the housing at an even faster clip than its initial penetration. It was as if the discblade realized the danger it was in, and belatedly tired of shredding the speeder's interior. It wrenched itself free of the mangled wreckage just in time as the volatile engine of the broken machine exploded.

He ignored the scattered bits of his first victim as he steadily gained on the others.

One vehicle had banked abruptly as its owners sought to cover their companions with covering fire. The Speeder still fleeing the scene was no doubt the one carrying their most precious cargo, or their leader.

Naruto headed straight for the now idle vehicle, and he watched as its owners tumbled out. The men trained their weapons on the approaching warriors. Sparks of blaster fire joined the fray.

Naruto twisted and ducked through the storm of energy guided only by his reflexes and the Force. It was at times like this that he wished for his Lightsaber; although his discblade could be used as a shield of last resort.

Still he made it through unscathed. He was aided in no small part by his companions who had sent their own blades arcing out.

His eyes picked out the forms of two men suddenly cut down with discs sticking from the side of the head. (Another man who was luckier or more hard done by depending on when you stand ended up with a discblade sawing through his thigh before its owner called it back on a path that claimed his opposite arm.)

Naruto settled on his own targets as the team streaked past him in pursuit of the other speeder.

"Surrender!" he yelled as he closed with the three surviving members out of this particular crew. He said this more for show than anything else.

Sometimes he was so close to letting the mask he had worn over the past years slip that he had to shore up his act with little pretensions such as this.

Typically they did not answer.

The first man came at him with energy weapon barking. Twenty meters away Naruto used the force to rip one of the doors off of their immobile speeder, and he sent it careening into the man's neck partially decapitating him.

The others blanched at this, but he did not have a moment's mercy to spare them.

_I guess this is almost what they would have called Taijutsu territory back in Konoha._

He released his discblade again and it snaked out to sever the weapons in the hands of both remaining men. It returned to his grasp just as he landed on one of the men with both feet crunching into his chest. As the man went down he plunged the blade deep into his throat.

"N- No!" the other man managed to garble as he turned to flee; his weapon abandoned, dead comrades, and illicit cargo no longer worth it.

It would have been unseemly to kill a fleeing opponent so Naruto simply used his blade to hamstring the man.

However he could not help but do it up close and bloody, so that the blood ran all the way up to his forearms.

He had to sate the beast within whenever he could.

Afterwards it only took moments for him to realize that he had lost sight of all the others.

His Zeison Sha mentor had continued the pursuit to hunt down the sole remaining transport.

The ground currents were exceedingly powerful, and manipulating the force to ride them made you move _very _quickly. Even though Naruto had been trained by the Zeison Sha to constantly deflect the wind around him with telekinesis, to the point where it was a reflexive action, stray blasts of air still made their way through his protective bubble to buffet his blond locks.

He brushed the offending hair out of his eyes. He was slightly frustrated as he called to inform Master Idrall that he was a bit expended after his own battle and would be heading back.

None the wiser to his ulterior plans his Master had agreed to continue the mission without him. If he could have seen Naruto's blood splattered form he would no doubt have been doubly sure that his apprentice needed a rest.

It was rare that the Zeison Sha's latest prodigy needed a break.

After informing Idrall that there was a single captive Naruto tied up the crippled survivor. The man wasn't going anywhere and the warriors who rode the winds with his Master could navigate their way back through the desert in their sleep.

"The sands are gonna try ta bury you so I suggest you wriggle around... a lot," he said as he set off on the currents once more. He didn't know if the smuggler would heed his words but in all honesty he didn't much care.

He only had a couple hours before his absence would be missed. He had to use this rare opportunity to contact Traya, for he knew in his bones that he had learnt all that he cared to from the warriors, and he itched to move on.

He was amazingly lucky to be in the vicinity of her hidden base, and his loping step brought him to her copse in under an hour.

He skulked around its edge now. It was the same place where she had sheltered him all those years ago.

The thought of his former naive self brought a smirk to face.

Though Naruto was only thirteen years old you would have mistaken him for a mature teen as he strode into the clearing with his back straight and eyes alert.

The potions Traya had given him had completed their work, even though he had only consumed them for about eight months, and he had almost finished growing over the two years and a bit he had spent amongst the Zeison Sha.

Naruto stood at over six feet, and his body was wiry muscle. This was apparent under the purple dyed armor of a warrior which he bore with the ease of long use.

Training with the Yanibaree warriors had driven the fundamentals of combat deep into his bones, and Naruto had become a more complete warrior for the experience.

His face was burned slightly from wind lash, despite the protective salves the Zeison Sha habitually slathered on, yet his clear cerulean eyes were full of focus.

Accessing the secret passageway only took minutes, and afterwards memories of the time he had spent in this place flooded his mind as he stalked through the cavern halls.

The walls of the underground system reflected cast sounds far.

Traya had attempted to combat this problem by implementing twists, turns, and great thick barriers of stone to serve as doors; Naruto was but twenty meters from her chambers when he heard the noises coming from within.

His heart ceased for an instant before icy calm flooded his veins.

Jealousy, betrayal, and a dozen unnamed emotions threatened to unman him, and wrest his control, but if there was one thing he had learned as a Sith it was that powerful emotions needed to be nursed if their strength was to be fully exploited.

Groans, shrieks, and the slapping sounds of passion assailed his years as he approached Traya's chambers through the dimly lit corridor.

Bile rose in his throat. He had never heard his Mistress utter such guttural moans.

He pushed against the door softly, and it opened with the faintest creak.

The room was inundated with the Force. Slowly it dawned on him. He realized in horror that Traya touched the dark in order to harvest the sexual energy of her lovers.

He had never before witnessed such action; things on the bed were out of control.

There lay Traya with her legs wrapped around the pumping waist of a Falleen male. Naruto wrinkled his nose. He could not imagine how she had procured the reptile, and the creature's pheromones colored the room with a dank musk odor.

Their naked bodies squirmed on the bed as Traya's Force ritual harvested the alien's vitality.

The Falleen wasn't a consenting party to the fucking.

Traya's clothes were damp with sweat and her hair glistened. Naruto could not help but focus on her face in repulsed fascination. She had her eyes squeezed shut, and chin firmly locked on the Falleen's shoulder.

One could have mistaken the posture for that of love if you did not notice how the Falleen seemed to shrivel as the seconds elapsed; almost as if he was having his life fluid sucked out.

A manic grin full of power, lust, and pleasure painted his Mistress's visage.

She had not even noticed Naruto's presence, laid bare in the Force as he was, that was how deeply she had sunk into her magic.

Naruto gulped at the realization that no male could ever survive intercourse with Mara Venton...

A strange grin came to his face. Watching them he had come to be sure that Falleen would surely be dead when she was through.

_Was I really jealous of this?_

He spared one last pitying glance at the Falleen. The being did not have much more in him, and Naruto would have to take what he had come for quickly before Traya caught on.

He had come to ask her to lend him her Lightsaber. He would use it to kill his Sha Master, and assume his place as first warrior. Everyone would assume that it was the work of their leader's errant daughter, and there was the chance that he would gain unfiltered access to the High Priestess.

But now he was going to steal it, for a part of him still felt that Traya's sexual predation was a sort of betrayal.

Whilst he had been learning the ways of the Zeison Sha she had been consolidating her grip over Yanibar's tiny but vicious underworld.

The smuggling crews he had hunted down earlier along with the Sha had been in her employ.

He looked to the bed furtively as the new plan crystallized in his mind.

His Mistress's Lightsaber lay beside her, and the silvery hilt beckoned to him.

He floated it away from her; using his power he bound the weapon's hilt with gossamer tendrils of wind.

Things were about to get very interesting at Sha Kalan.

* * *

><p><strong>Coruscant: The Jedi Temple<strong>

"And what of the boy Uchiha Sasuke?" Tessus was the oldest member of the council, but it was rare for the taciturn Gen'Dai to contribute to their deliberations.

The venerable Master was over a thousand years old, and his formless body, a clusters of nerve and muscle, quivered in a peculiar rhythm on the squat stump that served as his chair as his blood pumped.

"I sense that he is also ready to undergo the tests, and his Master is in agreement," Loric Gent replied respectfully.

Although he was Grand Master of the Coruscanti Order he was well aware that the wizened bundle that questioned him had witnessed the careers of all his ancestors.

"He came to us filled to the brim with anger," Tessus mused. He knew a lot about anger. His uncle Durge had been a vicious killer, and was still the most infamous member of his species in the galaxy.

"There is truth in that, and traditionally all three were too old for training. But I think it is fair to say that they have surpassed our expectations," Pav Qeral had proved herself to be the most vocal supporter of the children on the council. Hinata had been her Padawan for over a year.

There was a silence as the whole room weighed the words that had been spoken so far. Jedi Masters were not known for coming to quick decisions, nor would they hawk and haggle like the politicians housed the planet's assembly a click away.

Finally Grandmaster Loric judged the gathered beings to have come to their decisions. It was time for the vote.

"What say you Tessus? Do we allow the children to test for Knighthood," he asked the Gen'Dai Master. Many in the room heeded the beings words over his. However Loric felt no antagonism towards Tessus. There were times when even he valued the Gen'Dai's council over his own.

"The girls are ready. Sakura will make an excellent healer one day, and it has been a long time since the order has been blessed with the likes of Hinata."

"And Sasuke?" Loric pressed.

"It has been a long time since the order has seen _his _like as well," Tessus paused. Loric could tell that the energy in the room was firmly behind the old master. "I do not think that he is ready to be a Knight, and I don't think _we _are ready for him. His potential is _too _great, but I still have hope that his Padawan blade will teach him humility. "

Loric gave each council member a chance to speak, but it was quickly apparent that Tessus would have his way. When the tally was over he rose to his feet signaling the end of the informal gathering.

"Haruna Sakura and Hyuuga Hinata are to undertake the trials. We will observe Uchiha Sasuke's progress in the arts of... humility."

Pav sidled up to Loric as the rest of the council broke into clumps of muttering conversation, and slowly filtered out of the room.

"Orton is going to be furious you know," she said.

Sasuke was the apprentice of Master Orton. Orton was a great bear of a man. Before he had taken Sasuke on he had the temple's Battle master, and he vehemently insisted that his protégée was ready to test for Knighthood.

Orton had taken his apprentice on a trip to the under levels, but he would want word of the councils deliberations immediately upon his return.

They were following a lead concerning the new kind of spice that had been killing large numbers of consumers however, and it would be a while before Loric had to face that particular challenge.

"It is not rare for Masters to be blind to the faults of their students," he replied.

Pav smiled. "I can't wait to see you say that to Master Orton's face."

* * *

><p><strong>Sha Kalan<strong>

Despite the speed for which he was famed Naruto got back to the temple _after _the war party he had set out with.

The last Speeder was parked at the foot of the temple. Its insignificant mass served as a trophy to be viewed by the townsfolk around, and served to highlight the marvelous stone edifice to Zeison Sha rule it guarded.

He felt the Lightsaber press against his back where he had stashed it under his armor and cloak. He had an irrational fear that the weapon would self-ignite and cripple him for life.

He had an odd sense of _déjà vu_ as he saw his Zeison Sha Master Natsec Idrall waiting for him at the Zenith.

"First warrior!" he called out respectfully as he slowed his pace to a walk. "Did you find success hunting the last crew?" lines of tension were writ plain in Natsec's demeanor, and the Twi'leck's _lekku_ writhed in consternation.

"Where were you?" he asked brusquely, "you said you would be returning to the temple."

"I was tired and I misread the sands," Naruto lied.

"You did what? You are not an apprentice any longer child," Natsec's disbelief was evident. He eased up however. His student had proved himself in battle many times over. "Anyway never mind that. The man that you cut down bled out into the sands. How many times do I have to tell you that you go too far? Any one of them could have had valuable information."

"My apologies Master," Naruto placed one hand on the burly Twi'leck's shoulder, and after only a brief hesitation the sentient followed him into the temple. "I need to control myself better, but when I see _her _smugglers and crooks and remember the havoc they bring to our towns I can't help myself."

"You are young," Natsec said indulgently. "You will understand why you need to temper your fist with mercy as you grow in the way. It may sound strange, but you need to forgive Mara for what she did to your family," the Twi'leck trailed off before whispering, "We all need to forgive her - though she is our enemy."

_You would be right old warrior if I was the person you thought I was. It's unfortunate, but you have to die soon so I can move on. You and your people have nothing left to give me._

* * *

><p><strong>Coruscant: The Jedi Temple<strong>

Hinata was calm as she sat in lotus. Her nerves were steady as she began her trial of the spirit, and she sank into a bottomless Jedi trance.

Her Lightsaber lay on the floor of the room by her side. The shaggy hairs of the Bantha hide she used to strap the hilt had been dyed into a striking pattern of purple and white. She had chosen the design in homage of her faraway clan.

The tiny part of her that retained consciousness recalled the trials she had just gone through; the trials of skill, courage, and the flesh.

Her forearm and thighs still burned where the saber of her opponent had touched her (these wounds marked her mastery over the flesh), and her mind was still wrung out after her prolonged use of the Force.

She remembered the specter that had stood before her in the training chamber. The figures dark cloak had blended into the lightless room, but she had still sensed a familiar presence in its gait.

She had recoiled in horror when it revealed its face, and she was confronted with the azure eyes and blonde hair that stalked her nightmares.

Her heart had torn with every blow that she struck against the foe; that she struck against the evil simulacrum of Naruto.

She had not known that her true opponent was the current Battle Master of the order. The observing Masters had been impressed by her controlled ferocity as she held her own against the best duelist Coruscant had to offer.

Hinata was versed in the Ataru style, sometimes called Form IV. The powerful bounds and motions suited her unique Byakuugan, and she was rapidly achieving mastery over the style.

She was a bundle as they darted within the training space. There were occasional prolonged exchanges. Then her blade would dart and snake at her opponent, and she would seem to careen about within a small defined space; her constant steps serving as defense.

Yet she was facing a Master of the order - one that was dedicated to the Lightsaber. The Battle Master wore her down slowly, and in the process examined her Lightsaber technique.

His appreciation of her skill was evident in the blow that put her down; a debilitating attack to the thighs that she only just blocked.

If she had lacked even a grain of the skill she possessed then she would have had to rely on bionics for the rest of her life.

Upon her defeat the illusion was broken and Hinata remembered that she was testing for her Knighthood. She had been swallowed by the craft of the order to the extent that she had really believed Naruto had become evil, and she had been engaged in a battle with him for her very life.

They had not given her anytime to rest, for the trials, by their nature, had to be unrelenting.

Now she was fully consumed in her trial of the spirit, and she there was no more room to recollect all that had passed. Hinata faced the mirror.

She saw a vision of the future, or rather a vision of the future that _might _have been.

She saw herself three, or four years older. Perhaps she was at the age of sixteen or seventeen. Naruto was in this vision as well, but here he cradled her broken form. She knew that she had just saved his life in some way. An unnamed enemy lurked just over his shoulder. The heavily pierced man whispered words to poison her friend's heart.

This Hinata had taken to wearing her hair loose, just as the present incarnation did. But her archaic furred chainmail was at odds with the tan Jedi robes the real Hinata wore. Blood seeped from her mouth, and Hinata could tell that the woman had not quite outgrown her inherent shyness, just as she still exhibited some timid traits.

The woman coughed up some blood and Hinata felt an echo of her pain. In many ways she was still this woman, for all she knew this Hinata had lived her own life to the fullest in some different telling of events.

This woman had never known the love of the order. Hinata felt a deep compassion for her alternate self as the woman confessed to Naruto whilst on the verge of death.

As the scene faded from her memory Hinata felt an odd sensation of completeness suffuse her body. The vision had changed her. For the first time her history with Konoha became just a memory and she could accept her life with the order as reality.

She opened her eyes and was greeted with the sight of the Master's clustered around her. Worry was lined in Mistress Pav's face. She must have been under for a long while.

"Are you ready for the trial of insight?" Pav was worried, but it was only proper that her Mistress guided her past this final step.

"I am ready," Hinata felt sure that she would overcome this last hurdle.

She had emerged from her spiritual trial a full-fledged Knight of the order, and all that was left was for the universe to know it.

* * *

><p><strong>- Darklighter<strong>


	7. Chapter 7: The First Warrior's Pride

**SHGS - Chapter Seven: The First Warrior's Pride**

**Disclaimer: I do not own, or profit, from Naruto, Star Wars, and all associated media. **

**A/N**

"It's getting good now isn't it?"

**- Darklighter**

"_Thoughts"_

"Speech"

"_**Abnormal sentient thoughts"**_

"**Abnormal sentient speech"**

* * *

><p><strong>Yanibar: Sha Kalan <strong>

_Stand ready. Try to get the Falleen stink out of the pillows before I return._

Naruto's fingers typed the message rapidly. He smiled at his concluding line. He could not help but throw a small jab her way.

By the time Traya read it he would have stashed the archaic 'pager' back in its hiding place. The communications device was so low tech that the temple's electronic defenses were not keyed to the radio frequencies it emitted.

The device would scramble his message into code anyway.

Just in case.

His room was large, but it was not heavily appointed. The thick rug that greeted one's steps upon entrance was Naruto's most expensive possession. He stashed the pager in a crack in his wall. After creating the cache he had shifted a dresser all the way across the room to conceal it.

Traya's Lightsaber seemed to wink at him from within the hidey-hole. He had almost forgotten it. He pulled the silver shaft out of the space even as he closed the area off from prying eyes - putting the dresser to use.

It was light in his hand, for Traya had it spec't to personal use, and the width of her hand was not as large as his. It was a beautiful weapon, but he instinctively felt that it was not meant for him. Not in the long term.

Although he was more than ready to construct his own blade he did not have the privacy required to do so. Not cloistered as he was amongst the Zeison Sha.

There was a polite knock on the door. It came just as he had finished donning his armor, and concealed the Lightsaber in its hiding place at the small of his back.

"Come in," he called out.

The door opened a crack before it swung fully open. Master Natsec stood at the threshold.

"Ready?" the Twi'leck was 55 standard years old, and usually a man of few words. The dim lighting in the hallway outside gave his yellow skin a sickly aspect, and he was now almost a full head shorter than Naruto, but his aged muscles were still firm, and he was still the most formidable warrior the Zeison had to offer.

"Yes," Naruto said simply.

"You should eat something before you leave," the veteran said softly. Naruto could see the straps of the bandolier within which Zeison's discblade of office nestled. He had only seen Idrall use the weapon once before.

The blade on his Master's back was twice the size of a standard one, and cortosis had been weaved into its construction in the form of a thousand filigree etchings. It had no grip, for no First Warrior had ever wielded it in hand. The blade had been made to be held in the Force, and it could only be properly using telekinesis.

"I'm too nervous for food," Naruto said as he adjusted his gauntlets. It was true that he was slightly shaken now that the moment was upon them. He had not expected to come to like Idrall, nor had he expected to have built up such great reserves of respect for the Zeison Sha in general.

"Still; consume something. I need you at your best if Traya truly shows up," Natsec's tone brooked no argument.

"I will get something from the kitchens First Warrior," Naruto acquiesced.

"You don't look nervous at any rate. Since you came to us you have been my pride," the Twi'leck murmured as he turned to leave, "we will be leaving for the pass in two hours."

"At the steps then," Naruto assured his Zeison Master as the man's steps receded.

_I look calm to you? Oh Natsec… If only you knew._

Over three months ago the First Warrior had inadvertently revealed the identity of his mole in Traya's crew to Naruto.

Our hero had worked hard for a moment such as this. He had worked hard convincing the Zeison Sha that he was something he was not – winning their trust.

He was grateful for the clouding effect Traya's taint had on her mother's abilities. Else she and her First Warrior would have caught on from the day his 'father's' head went tumbling down the steps.

It had only been the work of a few text messages to convince Traya that she was best served letting the double agent be.

Now months later it was thanks to the diligence of said agent in pursuing her duty that they were able to set up the ambush they had planned.

Natsec's source had given the Twi'leck information suggesting that Traya had a big shipment of spice coming into the planet's second city. Furthermore the First Warrior mistakenly believed that Traya herself would be there to receive it.

The warriors had sought Naruto's input when they had been deciding which route to take. Everyone respected his talent for reading the planet's winds, and guessing which way they would blow.

On the surface the route he had suggested was quick; usually full of friendly gales that would speed them on their way.

His heart had throbbed for a second when the First Warrior had remarked that they would have to be careful when moving through a particular gully.

The desert sands gave way to rock in the area, and above the ravine there were wicked rock formations which could hide a thousand men. These created natural firing lanes.

It was with this in mind that Naruto had suggested the route.

Thankfully the First Warrior was yet unaware of his betrayal, and he had pointed out the tactical dangers of the region simply because he was a thorough commander.

There would be quite the surprise for Natsec and his chosen elite when they arrived at the ambush point. Despite the fact that they now thought themselves ready for a theoretical snare.

For Traya would be nowhere to be found, and they would face anti-personnel emplacements, built over the past week into the gully's surroundings, and manned by mercenaries versed in the ways of heavy laser cannon.

Furthermore they would have to contend with Naruto, for he would serve as the fourth column in the battle to come.

After years of study Naruto had finally learned how to use Sha Kalan's disciples' very nature against them; by this eve he would become the instrument of sorrow that they themselves had crafted.

The Zeison Sha numbered in the hundreds, but at any given time there were usually less than fifty warriors in the temple. Out of this number half would be newly promoted from the apprentice ranks, and the rest fighters of some capability.

The vast bulk of the Force sect made their home outside the temple. They either wondered Yanibar itself lending aid where it was needed, or they roamed nearby star systems doing likewise.

Traditionally they were a very independent people, but tonight the First Warrior would lead every available warrior in the temple to where he _thought _Traya would be. Only three of their number would remain in the temple to guard the High Priestess.

Whilst Naruto and her loyal criminals dealt with the deceived First Warrior and his group Traya would take the opportunity to sneak into Sha Kalan.

Naruto had not expected their ruse to work as well as it had, but he couldn't really fault Natsec for his eagerness. Darth Traya was the biggest problem Yanibar had faced in years.

If she had her way she wouldkill her own _mother_, and in so doing deprive the Zeison Sha of a great leader.

Under her tutelage the planet's underground grew obscenely wealthy, and criminal activity skyrocketed.

The Zeison had become accustomed to the foresight of their High Priestess, and how it allowed her to predict trouble before it sparked, but Traya's arrival three years ago had clouded her mother's vision, and the powerful seer had not been able to pierce the dark veil which shielded her daughter's intentions from her abilities.

_She had better get the job done._

Traya would have this one chance. After his own part in the plot was done Naruto intended to get as far away from Yanibar as was possible. When the Zeison Sha learnt of his betrayal he would be a wanted man. Assassins from Yanibar would probably be nipping at his heels for the rest of his life.

_Let them come. _He smiled as he left his room and made a beeline for the kitchens.

_They will discover that I learnt Natsec's lessons well._

* * *

><p><strong>Coruscant: Jedi Temple<strong>

Sakura had her rose colored hair pulled back into a messy knot, and she worried at her lower lip with her teeth. It had been weeks since she lost her Padawan braid, but her fingers still idly rose to tug on the non-existent strand.

She was in the temple library reviewing the latest literature from the Coruscanti medical society. The editorial on her datapad was a review on an article that had been written the month before by her Master.

She was working very hard not to get angry – very. The rival professor had the nerve to suggest that her Master did not know how potent Bacta produced in the presence of elite _Vrachen _suppliers was, and that the experienced, venerable even Ithorian Jedi Master had simply stumbled upon a rare batch of the highest grade Bacta, and mistakenly assumed his Force powers had achieved his intended amplifying effect.

_Master should have known better than to publish for civilians anyway. What do they know of the Force?_

The Temple's library was done up in soothing colors meant to relax and inspire meditative study; soft ambers and subdued blues. There were no overbearing reds, or brilliant whites to be found, but the article incensed Sakura and she began to lose her cool.

The hover-cushion she perched on was cobalt. It matched the hue of her simple robes; although it lacked the flower patterns she had painstakingly stitched with silver and black thread. Its back was a technological marvel which molded itself to the posture of each new occupant, but she was still irritated.

She pushed away from the desk abruptly - bumping into her neighbor and sending him to push against his own table.

She almost dislodged the carved Japor ivory wood hilt of her Lightsaber from its simple clip. As it was the seashell tassels she had attached to its end clattered softly further breaking the meditative silence.

If Jedi Knights could glare over such petty matters then the man did so. To her horror she realized that it was Lovett Alcatraz.

She had developed quite the crush on him ever since she had heard his lecture on ancient medicinal remedies.

His smooth baritone and smoldering dark eyes had pierced her in a way that rivaled even her abiding affection for Sasuke, and she had thought that the packed conference hall melted away – and that his gaze was for her only.

"Gomenasai," she said. Reflexively she slipped into her old tongue. She became doubly mortified at the look of confusion on his face. Accomplished scholars hated to be out of the loop.

_What the fuck are you doing idiot girl! Why is he here! GAAARGH I'll kill you! _ Her alter ego was always on hand at these times; without much success she suppressed the voice inside.

"Excuse me?"

"Sorry, I meant sorry, it means sorry, I mean… please excuse me," her face had turned beet red, but she tried her best not to scurry as she left the temple library.

_I am going to slaughter that dirty Thyferran!_

She blamed the professor whose article she had been reading for her loss of calm as she hurried into the hall outside.

Professor Hirf (no relation of the famous Qlaern Hirf) was fiercely protective over Bacta, like all members of his species, for it was they who had created it - and who to the day controlled most of the production.

_We have to go to their home-planet. Master needs to prove his theories, and convince them somehow - if we can the Jedi will be able to eradicate disease. _

Even though she _knew_ her Master's breakthrough could lead to an even more potent elixir it would be hard to convince the Vratix that their 'perfect palliative' could ever be improved by outsiders.

The temple was positively bustling at this time of day. The purposeful strides of the Jedi matched by the eager and wonderstruck gazes of the supplicants who had been admitted for the day.

You could recognize the first timers from the way they stared at the vaunted ceilings; mostly people with little history who knew nothing of Corillean Baroque, or Ogoth Tirian Gothic, or Coruscanti Renaissance.

Sakura would have sunk even deeper into her foul mood if she did not spot a friendly face.

Hinata was striding towards her; brought ever closer by the gentle press that flowed in both directions. To her joy she could see that her friend lacked her Padawan's braid.

She hadn't set eyes on the Hyuuga in the week since the beautiful, pale, young girl had told her that she would also be testing.

"Hinata! I'm so happy for you!" even though there was palpable joy in her voice she kept her words hushed. It would not be seemly to disturb the calm too much.

They let their hands do the talking. Hinata smiled as she brought her arms forward from where they had been stashed serenely behind her back, and they clasped each other warmly. Already the other Jedi stalking by paused fractionally to take note and the subtle whispers sprang up.

It was rare for children as young as they were to be elevated to full Knighthood. This was an unwelcome change from life in Konoha where times had been peaceful, but everyone in the Temple could sense the dark pall that had cast its shadow over the Force.

Already resources were put in place to maintain constant Holo-net contact with the Temples on Corellia and Tython. Although this was expensive there was little the Jedi could do but pay the exorbitant rates of the media corporations. They had no choice but to be ready this time when the dark swept over the galaxy once more.

"I'm glad you passed as well Sakura though I fear the need for us so early," Hinata perceptive as always was gazing serenely out of the massive viewing-glass. She had already noted that Sakura also lacked her braid, and now her attention was on the sun; it gave the illusion of tranquility.

Hinata had blossomed on Coruscant. Sakura would have envied her delicate companion if the Jedi had not taught her as well as they had – as it was she felt a soft glow in her heart.

"Let's go to my quarters," she said as they fell into step with the crowd, "far too much time has passed since we last spoke."

**Sha Kalan: Chambers of the High Priestess**

* * *

><p>Darth Traya had spent years nursing the grievance she held against her mother. Years under the tutelage of Deimus; a Neti Dark Lord without modern comparison. She had envisioned how she would break into the temple grounds of her youth and put right the wrongs of the past as her powers grew.<p>

Though in those moments when she had first fled she had never thought of seeing the worn steps again.

She remembered how her mother had stood over her father. Even though there had been tears in her eyes - tears Traya even now acknowledged as genuine, for she had been first witness to their love - she had sternly ordered her First Warrior's apprentice; the Twi'leck Natsec to execute his Master.

The Force had told her that her husband would eventually fall to the dark, and carry the Zeison Sha along with him.

_Well the Light side didn't deign to inform you that I would stand in his place, but I care not for the Sha. If I could I would destroy your precious order, and I am certain to kill you._

She was certain because even now she stood in the secluded corridor leading to her mother's private chambers.

What guards there had been she had veiled in webs of confusion. The slobbering wrecks were physically potent, but they lacked her mental proficiency.

Mara grimaced as she went to knock at the door. Even now after all this time her youthful habits beckoned to her. There had been a time she would have had to knock, for she could find her father inside locked in half embrace with ma.

She pushed the door open with some force. She was not surprised to see her mother standing to face her. This close the seer surely knew that she had come, and had surely predicted her own death.

"Mother…" she purred out the words, and was pleased to see hints of fear and doubt entered her mother's face for the first time.

Mariel had passed down the bulk of her features to her daughter. Except for Mara's nose which emulated the cruel slant her father had borne. She had the same aquiline eye and cultured neckline; an identical head of curling blonde hair. She had the same slender frame, just tall enough for a female warrior, and feminine grace.

She lacked the scars Mara bore on the back of her legs and torso.

She lacked the schooling and power Darth Traya had earned serving the dark.

"Mara… I knew you would come," even now her mother played the part of wise seer. The middle aged has been sat herself at her armoire, and proceeded to fiddle with the objects on its face. "I knew ever since the day I consigned your father. Though I had hope that I could change what was inevitable with love you never gave me the chance. You left so suddenly."

"What choice did I have?" Traya answered despite herself. She brought the new Lightsaber she had fashioned to bear. It was adapted from a training saber, and she had been forced to use one of the crystals out of her stash to power it and an improvised power cell, but it would do the job.

"You had my father killed before my very eyes," Traya said as she stalked across the room.

"I had no choice. One day I hope you come to understand." Mariel's voice was soft, soft, tired, and weak.

She made no move to shield herself from the gleaming red blade which pierced her heart.

**Yanibar: Ambush Point**

* * *

><p>The criminals in Traya's employ abandoned their usual ineptitude. They must have realized that this was their single chance to decimate the forces of order.<p>

When they sprung their trap they did so eloquently, and with a dedication to perfection that their dead brethren would have admired.

Concealing tarps were removed from the cannon on the ridges. The gunners were linked to the A.I's installed in the huge machines – which stood (its delicate machinery housed in a stout durasteel turtle shell and its gaping mouth spitting fire) on squat legs- though the computers were not as powerful as those that would govern capital ships, factories, or orbital emplacements, the gunners had preternatural accuracy over two kilometers.

"Break!" Natsec's worst nightmare was flowering before his buttery eyes. Already a dozen had fallen to the scything blaster fire caught as they were in the crosshairs of three separate and fortified batteries.

His followers rushed to do his bidding – throwing themselves to the dry and soft sands of the washed out gully – while a few brave souls began scale the sides of the ravine.

They met with surprise as men who had been hiding at the lip began to fire down at them. Several were hit and immediately fell to their deaths whilst the others belatedly began to retaliate with their blades.

Naruto himself had discblade in hand and as he weaved through the falling bodies and harsh rays he longed to bring Traya's Lightsaber into play.

He supposed the grizzled old warrior could only do his best to impose order as he watched the Twi'leck continue to bray orders. The being had let loose his great disc of office, for he made a standing target. The blade cut figure eight patterns in the air around its master as it reflected bolts meant to wither his frame.

Naruto almost moved to engage from within as he was to do, but something told him that the tide was not yet ripe.

He understood why his instincts had stayed his hand in the next instance when Natsec began to use his considerable Force ability.

He was not First Warrior of the Zeison Sha for nothing. He was already exerting great telekinetic ability as he manipulated the heavy defensive discblade like a leaf, and now he had his eyes closed in temporary meditation.

Soon enough gales of wind began to stir up the dust, and even to lash at the men controlling the laser cannon, for though their weapons were invincible they were not. It was time for Naruto to act.

"First Warrior! Look to your pride!" there was bile in his snarling voice as he flourished Traya's crimson Lightsaber. The malevolent blade seemed joyful to be released from its concealing prison as it came alive with a snap hiss.

Those warriors still alive stood in shock; looks of rage or incomprehension painted faces.

The laser fire had cooled after Natsec's intervention, but sporadic bursts still came through. The mercenaries had routed those who tried to scale the ridges, putting their superior numbers t and vantage to use, and were swarming down to converge on Naruto – who they could identify via the saber he bore.

Natsec opened his eyes. It tore his heart to see Naruto standing there so before him; discblade in one hand and the trademark weapon of an enemy even worse than the Jedi in the other, but he had no choice. The boy had laid bare his malevolent nature for all to judge and there could be no turning back from this.

"Kill the traitor," he said.

Naruto was proud of his Zeison Sha Master. The man was wise to adapt to reality without recourse to a lengthy session of how could you? Or why is this so? Still he hadn't expected his former brothers to turn on him with such ferocity.

He had expected them to be poleaxed with shock for a few seconds more at his transformation.

Collins sent his blade sweeping at him in a wide arc. Naruto locked it into mind as he turned to face more deadly fare. Collins was just out of training.

Bvethla came from one of the few Zabrak families to have settled on the planet, and she was very talented. Naruto remembered her from his early classes, and she had graduated before him.

Her face (designed with blue tattoos) was the picture of calm as she came for him, for she leant closer to the light than most in the Sha, but she was a bundle of energy as she advanced with a blade gripped in each hand.

He went to meet her letting loose with his own blade as he ran. She battered it to the side, but he retained control over the whirling projectile with his mind and sent it to bury in Collins' neck.

Naruto felt the hint of danger he had been tracking from Collins loose blade vanish from his mind. The foolish boy had left himself unprotected when he saw Naruto turn away.

A smile broke out on his face as Bvethla lost control over her features. The Zabrak wore a snarl to match his grin as the clashed weapons.

She came at him like a lithe boxer, swiping at him with the discs clenched in each fist, and he backpedalled using his saber to parry her blows.

Some fool tried to interrupt them with a thrown blade but the sound of it echoed in his mind, and he leaped to dodge. Bvethla was not so aware and she was forced to parry the thrown disc. This gave him the opportunity to plant his satisfied right boot in her face.

She stumbled back as he landed, but before he could press his advantage another warrior tried to ambush him. He sheared the weapon in half with his saber. The fact that he had been able to cut it so easily meant that the owner was low ranked and did not own cortosis. He wondered how the being still lived when his betters had been slaughtered by indiscriminate cannon.

He pressed the attack. The pain from his previous blow forced Bvethla to fight on the defensive, and slowly he inched her closer to his trap.

Meanwhile the mercenaries had arrived on the scene. They would ensure that there would be no more surprise interventions in the duels he engaged in.

Finally Bvethla was where he wanted her to be, with her back to Collins body, she had forgotten about his discblade as he engaged her with the Lightsaber.

He intentionally left an opening in his left sector. She threw the blade in her right hand eagerly. She hoped she could strike him down. As suddenly as it had appeared the opening vanished and his saber swung down to swat her discblade into the ground. At that same moment he called back his own discblade from Collins body whilst thrusting forward with the saber. She was forced to parry his energy sword, and her eyes widened in realization when it was already too late as his blade sawed through her middle as it returned to his hand.

"No!" Natsec had turned his attention to the mercenaries present in the gully when those criminals had shown their faces – scaling down into the ravine, but he had also kept an eye on Bvethla's battle with his apprentice.

He was caught in two minds even as his defensive blade reflected a blaster bolt back into the midsection of its owner. He did not know if any single one of his warriors could take down his dark apprentice, armed as he was with saber _and _blade, and he saw no choice but to join the fight himself.

"Face me old man," Naruto maintained his disrespectful smile as he called out to the First Warrior. As far as he was concerned the old warrior did not have a choice as to whether they did battle, and he enjoyed the thrill of employing Don Moch. "Come and get your pride," he grabbed at his penis. "It's here between my legs."

The First Warrior made no reply, but he came nonetheless. Like Bvethla he had a fighting blade in each hand, but his defensive blade cut lazy arcs through the air as it circled him offering its protection.

_This is gonna be some fight. Quick too._

Adrenalin had been pumping through Naruto's veins since they had left the temple, but this final showdown took the biscuit.

Sweat poured down his forearms to mingle with the bloody grip of his discblade in left hand, and to loosen his grip on the Lightsaber in right. He spread his feet and entered a defensive crouch as he splayed his left hand forward in the approaching Natsec's direction. His fingers touched the inner rim of his discblade whilst his thumb and mind maintained iron control over the weapon.

His right hand held his saber out and back. He had reversed the grip so that he held it parallel to his forearm, and he also had it bound under his mental control.

Natsec was within distance now and they circled each other warily.

Though men and beings fought and died all around them it was this battle which would dictate the fate of all the others, for it was the survivor's side who would prevail.

_So the Force dictates._

Natsec came for him with more fury and finesse than Bvethla could ever muster even if she studied with the Zeison Sha for eternity.

He did not hold the fighting blades, but sent them to whir at Naruto in succession and rapidly recalling each to his grip so that he could not take advantage.

Naruto did not know why they called the defensive blade that, for his old mentor used the weapon proactively. The Twi'leck sent the weapon tumbling at him. More than once he was forced to tumble through the dirt in an undignified manner.

The duel continued in this vein for several long and tense minutes.

The mercenaries had ceased pouring fire down into the ravine seeing as their own men were also there. Even so Naruto could tell that very few Zeison Sha Warriors remained alive for his Master began to attack him with a desperate fury.

"You have taken everything," the Twi'leck ground the words out as he advanced. Things around them had cooled to the point that the mercenaries were free to form a ring of spectators around them.

Still a carefree grin plastered Naruto's face. He stilled the motions of the defensive blade for an instant using his considerable telekinetic ability, and swept in close punching at Natsec's sternum with his discblade whilst stabbing for his instep with his Lightsaber.

Natsec parried both attacks, but the Twi'leck could not stop himself from getting entangled with Naruto, and the blonde head-butted him viciously - savoring the pain and using it to fuel his reflexes. His right hand twitched and the pitch of his thrust changed. He managed to cut Natsec deeply on the shin as the warrior drew back.

He had a second of warning that arrived just in time as he realized that he had lost the battle over Natsec's discblade. He dove to the side as it came crashing into the earth where he had stood – its blades straining against the blood soaked turf.

Clambering to his feet Naruto kept the dangerous weapon in mind as he faced Natsec again. He was breathing heavily, but the Twi'leck warrior was by far the worse off.

Natsec limped forward favoring the leg that Naruto's saber had burnt. He still had power over his discblade, and he pulled it from the earth with his will, but when it resumed its predatory arcs its motions were unsteady and labored.

The Twi'leck had lost one of his fighting blades when they had clashed. Uncharacteristically he made no move to retrieve it instead, for the first time he looked around and met the leering faces of the rogues who had slaughtered his warriors. The fact that he was the only one from his order left alive seemed to strike him, and Natsec let out a withered breath.

"Come to your honorable death," Naruto said as he resumed his stance. In the unlikely event that Natsec managed to defeat him the mercenaries would still not let live.

It could have been his imagination, but later he would come to tell himself that the First Warrior had nodded in acceptance in those last moments.

* * *

><p><strong>Coruscant: Sakura's Quarters<strong>

"So that's how it is in the end," Sakura sighed. She had been expecting the news that Hinata had to bear, but still she could only wonder how Sasuke would take it.

"Yes. Mistress Pav was quite sure that Sasuke will not be allowed to test till next year. Despite the coming darkness we all feel," Hinata was so assured and polite that many of the Jedi held her up to young members of the order as a shining example to be aspired to, but Sakura could tell that she was also pondering the nature of their compatriot's eventual reaction to the news that he was not to be elevated.

Even Sakura was slightly awestruck as she watched the girl daintily sip the tea she had prepared.

_We're a far sight from Konoha_

"And when do you leave for Corellia," she asked. She wondered what Hinata thought about her room and its subtle rosy furnishings. She wondered what the dark haired girl's quarters were like. She had never seen them.

Hinata paused to look at her before replying. Her steaming mug held in mid grip, and her lavender eyes hauntingly beautiful. There was no need for artificial lighting as the open viewing portal let in the rays and a mild breeze.

"In two weeks… I am to train under the battlemaster there," was it just her or did the girl betray doubt in her tone.

"Are you worried?"

"I don't know. I- It is a rare honor, and the order is going to much expense," yes a shadow of the shy girl her friend had once been was back.

"Don't worry," Sakura turned to face her comfortingly, "I wish the order showed as much faith in me as they do you. I wish there was still a great library at Ossus so that I could unlock medicinal secrets, or I could do more to help with the new spice addiction that is sweeping the poor quarters, but we are all called to different levels of service."

"Oh Sakura!" one hand flew to cover Hinata's mouth. "You are very useful to the order! I won't have you say otherwise!"

Sakura smiled to herself. Her wise and giving friend was back and she would do her best to make sure that left for the Corillean system in the same spirits.

* * *

><p><strong>Yanibar: Traya's Hideout<strong>

Naruto rode back to Traya's headquarters on the back of one of the mercenaries Speeders. There was no need for subtlety now. Not with his fingers covered in the First Warrior's blood, and a legion of witnesses who would recount their victory when they returned to terrorize the environs liquor houses.

He remembered the expression on the old warrior's face as the duel had ended. He had stared at the hilt of Traya's Lightsaber in consternation. As if he could not understand why it poked through his sternum, and he did not know the spiky blonde who gripped it with both hands.

Whatever thoughts there were that had been going through the Twi'leck head had surely been extinguished by Naruto's discblade as it circled with a predatory glint to come sawing into his neck.

At the end the First Warrior's ceremonial discblade had lain beside his dismembered torso.

His dead eyes had seemed to glare daggers of betrayal at it as Naruto scooped it up from the sand, and divested the slain warrior of his bandolier.

Traya's smugglers and mercenaries had given him a wide birth as he climbed out of the ravine, and nobody had said a word to him as he had seated himself in when of their vehicles; hacking into the computer interface that controlled it.

It was odd riding in a Speeder after the time he had spent with the Zeison Sha running across the sands. Odder still for he had not had much opportunity to use the devices even when he had been with Traya - her training had been more hands on in nature. He could not feel the wind cutting into his flesh; the temperate environs inside the reinforced transparisteel cockpit wrong.

It was with relief that he exited the vehicle, and entered Traya's 'hut' hideout for the last time.

Checking the secret base for her presence she was nowhere to be found. Not even in the training area where she spent a large amount of her day, or in the bedroom where she entertained her 'sexual nutrition.' He left her Lightsaber on the mantle by her bedside. He wasn't a thief.

Well…

It wasn't what he intended to steal.

He wandered through aimlessly. She had never told him which cavernous hallway led to the room he searched for. Somewhere in this complex there was a Ship. With a concealed egress way, for Traya would never present her enemies on planet with a lair to trap her in.

He almost missed what he was looking for, but something guided his steps. Something wanted him off planet. He found the secret way in her library. Predictable, but out of odds with what he would expect from Traya who he had thought would hide the way in the toilets or some such dank area.

The passageway was surprisingly short. Although all things considered it served its purpose much better that way. Like all the other areas of Darth Traya's subterranean abode it was poorly lit.

Access to the ship itself was barred by a reinforced door. The only security was an old fashioned keypad with the Sith alphabet.

Naruto stopped to think. Traya was twisted, and she did not know that he had at least mastered the corresponding letters for the galactic basic alphabet.

_That bitch… it would be just like her._

Hesitantly at first, but then with increasing confidence his fingers typed out her mother's name.

_Mariel…_

There was a tense delay, but he felt triumph when the door hissed aside.

_Got you on the first guess_

If the first War-Yacht he had ever laid eyes on had given him the impression of an unsheathed dagger then this one reminded him of a bear's paw replete with five black claws.

He looked closer and noticed its name stained in white on the matte noire surface.

_The Aventis_

Even now Traya's efficiency and pride had worked against her, for in putting in the code to the door leading to this magnificent launching bay he had also woken the ship's A.I.

He felt its powerful presence resonate with his brain as he approached. An itch began to build at the base of his neck where his interface was installed.

_You're a virgin! Even Traya hasn't taken you out yet!_

He greeted his new ship with a smile as it opened its hatch to him and sent an inquisitive landing ramp trailing forth.

"_Don't worry my dear we'll get you a new paint job, but first Tatooine. There is a beast I have been dying to hunt."_

* * *

><p><strong>AN**

"Thanks for the apology Joe. This chapter is dedicated to you,"

**- Darklighter**


	8. Chapter 8: The Krayt Dragon

**SHGS - Chapter Eight: The Krayt Dragon**

**Disclaimer: I do not own, or profit, from Naruto, Star Wars, and all associated media. **

**A/N**

"Enjoy,"

**- Darklighter**

"_Thoughts"_

"Speech"

"_**Abnormal sentient thoughts"**_

"**Abnormal sentient speech"**

* * *

><p><strong>The system of Tatoo <strong>

The system of Tatoo was spectacular and as one of the galaxy's oldest children its beauty surpassed most.

Upon exiting hyperspace one was greeted by the competing luminescence of the aged suns Tatoo I and Tatoo II. They were glorious; still burning fierce after untold millennia of existence.

It was the first system he had the chance to truly appreciate, for he had been unconscious before leaving Terra and had only woken after arriving on Yanibar.

After his time on that planet, and after stealing the Aventis, he was so preoccupied undertaking his first space flight (A subject he knew the theory of if not the doing) that he had no time to admire the galactic scenery. Now Naruto counted himself exceedingly lucky to be in a rare binary system.

Planets that could support life were rare even in unitary systems - though the vast expanses of the galaxy made them seem abundant; therefore the planet Tatooine was a miracle, for life crawled on its face. Savage life accustomed to a daily battle for survival and moisture, but life nonetheless.

At the great distance from which he observed it Tatooine glowed as if it aspired to become a sun like the life-givers it circled.

Aventis plotted an approach vector and he settled back in his seat. His azure eyes gleamed behind his helm taking in all that was around him. Something of the juvenile lurked in Naruto's grin, and the lines killing had marked into his youthful face melted away for a second. For that second he was a thirteen year old boy, and not the powerful dark user that he had become.

The moment passed as they drew closer and fell into the sparse traffic around the planet. Now it was unassuming - a simple and arid sludge ball. To look at it one would not have thought that its existence was so miraculous.

He was connected to Aventis through the ship's helm. It fit over his face and plugged into his neural interface. He kept one eye on the data current the ship fed into his mind-space: velocity, navigational calculations, threat assessments on other vehicles, and the general chatter that centered on Mos Eisley's Tower Control facility.

"Aventis 78590 - please provide yer credentials and state yer business on Tatooine," Tower Control hailed him after they had been in orbit for ten minutes.

"Nathaniel Uzumate. I'm here on a private hunting expedition," Naruto provided the false name Traya had given him, and instructed the Aventis to forward his virtual identification.

The identity chips came in the neural interfaces, which had proliferated to the extent where they were almost universal, and there was not a single pilot in the galaxy who owned a War-Yacht, or other fighting and commercial vehicles who did not also have I.D.

To install one you needed to be a registered native of a star-faring planet.

Traya had forged his Yanibaran citizenship perfectly, and after it had checked out at Sha Kalan he did not expect any problems here.

"Gi' me a moment... just checking ya out now," Tower Control sounded bored. He probably dealt with hundreds of cases like Naruto by the month; Rodians and bounty hunters.

"Take your time. I'm not so eager to join you on that rock as I may seem. I'm hoping for a quick in and out," Naruto said cheerfully.

"I hear ya," TC grunted.

"Hold on there," the voice turned suspicious suddenly; suspicious and slightly wary. "There's two bounties on yer head. One comes from a recognized enforcement agency on yer home planet, and tha other is anonymous; but that usually means worse types are afta yer…

"Tatooine ain't no safe haven stranger. It's just a warnin but the rim is wild, and many a hunter - man, Rodian, or Twi'leck, don't matter much matter which, would go after _anyone _for the 'mount a credits I'm seein on ma here screen,"

"Don't worry about it," Naruto assured him. "I'm just here to hunt a Greater Krayt is all - not planning on much bloodshed at all."

There was a long pause as the Tower Control digested these words.

"I'll just let you through then," he said finally - writing Naruto off as the kind of crazy that was bound to get himself killed at any rate. "I'll be keepin an eye out fer yer bird at auction. She's a beaut."

Naruto smirked as Aventis got the go ahead and proceeded to plot a short course for the primary city; Mos Eisley. "You couldn't afford her friend."

He was well aware that Aventis would touch down within twenty minutes, but he was not in a particular hurry. For the first time in a long while he was moving at his own pace.

Naruto removed the constraining helmet when he was sure that the landing would go off without any problems. It felt as if the Aventis did not want to let him go as its connecting cord snaked out of his interface. He practically had to banish it.

The ship was a virgin and still unused to human contact. It would get addicted to his particular mind the longer they were together he knew. This was just one out of many safety protocols that helped ensure the sentient War-Yachts remained loyal to their owners.

He rose in a smooth motion and headed for the caboose. He had not eaten since leaving Yanibar; although he had done a lot of catching up on sleep.

His arms felt stiff at the shoulders where his new battle form-suit pinched. Some glitch in the software had stopped the protective garment from sorting out the issue, but the wrinkle would resolve itself in time.

It was all one piece from his head to the very soles of his feet, and as such he had no need for boots or underwear. Although the form-suit was not fully adjusted to his body he could already tell that it would allow him a far greater range of motion than his old Zeison Sha armor had. He could barely feel its weight.

As for color the suit was deep blue. So blue as to be black, and trimmed at the sleeves and high collar with a royal bronze hue. It had very limited camouflage capabilities meaning he could change the schema at will. However the system was a prototype and very power intensive. As it was this was the format he had chosen for day to day wear.

The suit was just one of three unexpected 'gifts' Traya had stashed on the Aventis, there had also been two cases packed with credits (running into the millions) but this was expected on a getaway ship, yet it was the least of the treasures he had found.

The most valuable had been Deimus's Holocron. He was sure that Traya had only stashed it away because she had no more use for it, but it nicely solved any issues concerning his continued education. After he had mastered it secrets the next step would be to develop his own strengths, and for that he did not need the Dark Lord. Furthermore he would finally be able to study the Sith tongue. He was sure that secret was in the pyramid jewel's breast.

Almost as precious, and definitely as rare, was the small Lingan crystal he had found in the Aventis's study. Traya had placed it there as an ornamental paperweight.

It had been holding down old fashioned papers that she had scribbled on in some code of her own devising. He had ruffled through the documents trying to discern their meaning for a while before he realized what the black stone was. Afterwards he had abandoned trying to decipher Mara's machinations, and became thoroughly engrossed in the puzzle the gem presented.

Eventually he surmised the reason why she had not used it herself – though he could not for the life of him say where she had found it. On the face of it the potent crystal seemed too small to be used in the crafting of a Lightsaber.

But Naruto had a very special weapon in mind. If he could help it his first Lightsaber would be a work of deadly art beyond comparison with the weapons of any other Sith, or Jedi; just as his discs had no equivalents among the Zeison Sha.

He grabbed at his shoulder again as he eased into the small kitchen. His armored suit was really pinching him as the material shifted and tried to fix the original wrinkle. The whole thing was really a flexible composite of different materials. Hence the difficulty it was having rectifying a small miss measurement it had made after he had first unpacked and donned it.

The first stratum, the one closest to Naruto's skin, was the pulmonary system of the armor. Here there were the microscopic tubes that could transport Bacta or Stims to the surface of his skin whilst at the same time monitoring his bio functions, and extracting the nutrients the form-suit's nanites needed to survive from his body.

The next layer was the electronic core of the structure; a small A.I that was weaved into a net of fibers which served as a nervous system, and relayed its instructions to the rest of the suit. The A.I capsule was located over his heart as was the power cell. To kill the suit you would have to kill him.

One level up there was the skeletal structure and armor of the form-suit. This was a greyish blue goo home to a billion nanotech machines. This 'metallic sea' was tuned to pulses from the suit's A.I, and it contracted or relaxed in rhythm with his motions granting extra speed and power; the goo would also solidify when his body was subjected to sudden stresses to protect him although it could not stop a Lightsaber.

Finally there was the external chameleon cloth whose only extra redeeming features were that it was fire retardant, and helped regulate his temperature to some degree.

_Traya never paid me for my three years of service amongst the Zeison Sha. I'm sure a budding young criminal Sith such as herself can find new treasures, so excuse me if I just help myself to what I'm due._

By the time Aventis had touched down within the primitive holding pen that had been assigned to it he was digging into the meal he had prepared.

Naruto could not help but be austere in his eating habits after the time he had spent on Yanibar although the simple (unidentified) meat sandwich was massive in proportion. He closed his eyes as he savored the last bite, and accompanied it with clear water that refreshed as it passed down his throat. Soon he would savor the death of an ancient beast, but before he faced it he had to do his homework.

When he was done eating and drinking he began to review the small data pad he had on the table before him. On it were all the known habits and ranges of Greater Krayt Dragons.

Later the steps that took him away from the caboose, after he had digested for a judicious amount of time, were measured and purposeful. His form-suit had finally resolved the issue with his shoulder as he had prepared his meal, and his lanky frame cut a formidable picture as Naruto's muscles flexed against the protective material.

He headed for the armory to get his discs, for the first thing he had done after taking possession of the Aventis was to make it thoroughly his own. Exploring its nooks when they were safe in hyperspace and memorizing its passageways.

Anything belonging to Traya that he hadn't fancied had been ejected into the cold wastes outside after the ship's hyperdrive had disengaged and they entered the Tatoo system.

The armory had been outfitted by an apprentice of the dark side - one that relied on her Lightsaber despite her considerable Force abilities.

Naruto had not seen fit to change much here although if the dueling pit, which allowed him to practice against lifelike holographic opponents, hadn't been immovable he would have relocated it to the eastern quadrant.

Everything else was vital to his plans, for his first priority was to construct his Lightsaber.

He strapped on his bandolier - claiming it from the strap it clung to by the entrance. He had combined his old harness with Natsec's.

The big defensive blade still lay across his back, but it was joined by an attachment that secured his fighting disc under his right armpit.

The bandolier snaked down along his spine to merge with the last piece which was a utility belt that he cinched around his waist. The empty clip by his left thigh was where his Lightsaber would eventually go, and small brass compartments were along the rest of the belt's length. These would hold Bacta patches, Stims, and any other small odds and ends he picked up.

The armory was devoted to the art of Lightsaber combat and construction. There were three small furnaces which could be used to forge synthetic crystals; carelessly placed by their sides were marked bags containing the raw materials needed for their make.

Dominating the center was a cast durasteel anvil, and a vast workbench. The only items from the armory that had joined Naruto's clear-out of the Aventis had been on this workbench. Mostly the junk had comprised of half constructed or finished Lightsabers and hilts which he did not care for.

He paused to eye the room before he left. The inner components he would need for his saber were on the bench as he had left them.

_As if there's anyone here with me._

He smiled slightly to himself as he walked for the ship's exit, but a touch of sadness lurked in the depths of his smirk. He hadn't thought that he would miss the Zeison Sha, Natsec in particular, as much as he did.

When he finally exited the ship he was greeted with his first taste of a truly barren world.

Tatooine was completely inhospitable. He wondered how the small brown cloaked and yellow eyed creatures that immediately swarmed around the Aventis's gangplank could survive in their heavy robes. As it was his suit was laboring to keep him in tolerable nick, and beads of sweat were already beginning to sprout on his brow.

"Shoo!" he said unnecessarily as the Aventis retracted its gangplank. Already he itched to grasp his fighting disc in mind and hand, but he reflected that it would not be the best of luck to begin his brief sojourn with wanton violence.

Luckily, for them, the sentients were timid, and their passive natures saved their hides as they scurried out from under his stride; thier fearful amber eyes gazing at him from within the dark hoods they wore.

The port authority was coming to meet him. The elderly woman looked ridiculous in her yellow and white uniform, but the glare in her eye – as she took in his warrior's guise and weaponry – was quite real.

"What's your business on Tatooine?" she asked as he came within speaking distance.

"I already answered that question. Tower Control cleared me to land," Naruto said looking intently into her wrinkled face.

He wasn't very skilled with mind tricks but he was reasonably sure that he could manage to deflect her unwanted attention. However he wasn't yet sure if using the mind trick would be worth the effort.

"I have to clear you to enter Mos Eisley," the woman maintained the same hostile tone with which she had greeted him.

"As you can see I carry no blasters," Naruto said; smiling broadly and lifting his arms. His fighting disc was highly visible as it dangled. "I'm a simple hunter here to experience Tatooine," he said.

The woman peered at him doubtfully; rubbing at her rummy eyes with the edge of her wrinkled knuckle. "There are bounties on your head. Young as you are. That makes me nervous," she sounded doubtful now. It would only take a few more words.

"I'm a peaceful man but I stand for my rights," he emulated the kind of mentality that was prevalent in the Rim. "I only want to ply my trade for a little bit and then I'll be off," his arms settled back down by his sides, and he waited for her response.

Finally she seemed to nod him towards the holding pen's exit.

"Off with you then lad. Try not to come by any trouble while you're here, or cause any. I'll be informing the authorities that one such as you is on planet. It's not every day you see one of... those," she looked pointedly at the Aventis.

His ship seemed to bask vainly under her stare.

"Speaking of… could you arrange something for me? I want a new paint job for my ship. Orange, but tell the person who does it to surprise me. Money is no object."

He didn't wait to hear her reply but instead strode out and into Mos Eisley.

* * *

><p><strong>Tatooine (Wilderness) <strong>

It had taken him two weeks to reach the mountain ranges where Greater Krayt were said to roam. Two weeks travelling through the area around the Jundland wastes avoiding marauding sand people (he had did not intend to waste his time or energy) and doing constant battle with the oppressive daytime heat and frigid night chill.

He had not used a Speeder, but rather made the journey on foot carrying his limited water supplies in a sling and occasionally hunting small game.

He intentionally turned his quest to construct a Lightsaber into a torment, for the Sith path was very clear. Power had to be earned, and the harder it is to earn then the more potent it is, earned through blood and sweat, for only power that had been gained in this way was surest and truest.

Now two weeks into his ordeal he had finally found one.

He watched the Greater Krayt surface once, and the rest of the time was forced to track the bulge it made in the surface sands as it roamed. The dragon must have recently consumed a Sarlaac, for it did not bury itself deeply and speed away, but only trusted its bulk in the shallow silt.

This continued for several days, and he grew wary of tracking the aimless wandering of the mindless bulk as the beast forayed through its territory.

He had been about to strike at it the second time it surfaced, pulling its lumbering fanged and copious body complete with six or eight trunk like legs from the dunes, but his hand had been temporarily stayed by the entrance of new players.

A group of young Tusken raiders had joined the hunt at some point over the past few days. They must have been brave and skilled youths. Not only had he not noted their presence from his observational distance, but they were foolhardy enough to take on the greatest of Krayts when a lesser dragon would have sufficed for the purposes of their ritual passage.

The Tusken came at the Greater Krayt Dragon with yodeling whoops and weapon's fire from the cycler rifles they wielded. A few of them had their slug-throwers modified for rate of fire instead of accuracy, and these were identifiable by their shorter barrels and lack of scoping sights. Each raider also carried a Gaffi stick, but even the Tusken were not so foolish as to take on a Greater Krayt with their melee weapons.

The Krayt bellowed its rage as red streaks began to open up on its blue hide. The great head swayed from side to side as it viciously surveyed the tiny bipedal mammals encircling it.

Naruto sprang into action as he sensed a shift in the battle's tide about to come. He did not move to save the raiders, but because they made for a very convenient distraction. The Greater Krayt was fully focused on the stinging pelts it was receiving from their automatic weapons, and would not consider a lone warrior such as himself a huge threat.

Uncharacteristically the Krayt Dragon tried to bury itself again, as if it wanted to flee, but the Tusken would not let it. Three brave souls scaled the beast's side, and they began to pour bullets into it from point blank range.

Enraged the Greater Krayt shuddered with great violence dislodging the foolhardy sentients – soon they were crushed underfoot as the dragon abandoned reason, and resolved to join the battle for real. The earth quaked as the monster lumbered forth and its spiked lashing tail emerged from the sand.

_Seven hundred paces _

He was almost upon the battle.

This was not Yanibar. There were no preternatural winds to speed his steps, but he made his best effort. He was a blur as he skipped over the dunes barely sinking into the soft sand despite his weight and lack of proper shoes.

Neither the Krayt Dragon, nor the Tusken raiders had ever done him any harm. Yet he had more than enough fuel for his dark side power. All he had to do was cast his mind back to his life in Konoha.

He felt the power grow and bubble inside, but he exerted his trademark iron control and held off. At any rate the time for release would be soon, for the battle had now coalesced into a close up that included him.

Till now the raiders had only faced the Krayt's maw. They had not had too much trouble dodging its clumsy lunges, and had been overwhelming its acute senses with the confusing cries they let loose, and with the flashes of explosive powder and noise their cycler rifles discharged.

Naruto knew that in some recess of its tiny brain the dragon was probably regretting its earlier greed when it had eaten a Sarlaac. If it had not been in its torpid state it could have made short work of the raiders, and he supposed that this was part of the reason why Sarlaacs were delicacies as far as Krayts were concerned.

They could not resist feasting until they were over sated, yet they also could not risk the deep sands after such a feast, for there was the fear that they would be unable to shake themselves free when the time came to move, nor could they risk rocky ground because they would be weak with somnolence.

This Greater Krayt was now in serious danger. Despite its lashing tail the Tusken, seventeen in number, continued to edge in close and hammer shots into the Krayt's side. Naruto saw why as the dragon bellowed its rage and agony.

The raiders had two Speeders to their name armed with light rockets. The vehicles had probably been lurking ten or 15 kilometers away waiting for their brothers' call. Although it was unusual for the sand people to use such technology, they often relied on Banthas, these youths had moved with the times, and they would gain much honor if they managed to slay the creature – Speeders or no Speeders.

Naruto felt rather than heard the dull explosion as the Land-Speeders entered the fray. The one which was in the lead fired a chemically propelled rocket which struck the lower portion of the Krayt's right foreleg. There was a sudden blossom of blood, fire, and force as the reptile was dealt a crippling blow.

_Woah! Can't let y'all have all the fun!_

Naruto had intended for the Tusken to serve as a distraction. Though he was loathe to recognize their skills; they were quickly making short work of the laboring dragon, and the introduction of the Speeders' missiles had swung the scales their way even further.

(While there have been some dark siders who enjoy reaping the rewards of the hard work of others; Naruto was the type who enjoyed getting his hands dirty.)

He had found a target for the power he had been building up within. Flourishing his telekinetic abilities he grabbed ahold of the lead Speeder, though the occupants did not know it, suddenly the nose of their vehicle pitched down to crash into the desert as if it were a flying fish that could surface from water for only a brief instant.

The strength of Naruto's willpower was so awesome that the vehicle's bonnet dented under his mind's pressure. The second Speeder had been trailing close behind, and the occupants had not been expecting the sort of supernatural intervention that took place.

The driver tried to veer away and avoid his downed partner, but now Naruto had the full weight of his abilities on _his _vehicle. He held it steady to ensure the crash, and enjoyed the familiar pleasurable thrill he experienced whenever he embraced the Force. He felt the aliens' souls shrivel away and pass on as the collision occurred, and towering gouts of flame further brightened the day.

Now the group of Tusken took note of him.

They had no choice but to do so as the flaming wrecks that contained the charred flesh of their dead clan or tribe mates greeted their eyes. He heard the harsh babble of their strange tongue as Gaffi sticks were unsheathed and pointed in his direction.

They began discharged their weapons towards Naruto, who by this time had his defensive blade out and weaving patterns of protection to his fore. This was the first time he had wielded the disc in battle although he had practiced manipulating it with his mind aboard Aventis.

It took great skill to guide the blade and adjust its trajectory as it reflected the energized metal slugs. The bullets had more mass than blaster bolts, and each one threatened to send the disc spinning out of his control, but he had always been a quick learner and the discs gyrations steadied as he became accustomed to the feel of the ricocheting shells.

As he advanced he summoned his fighting disc to his left hand. At this range he could make out the grimy re-breathers the Tusken had strapped below the neck, and he could smell their stink under the voluminous brown robes.

Although he could not see the Tusken's faces, masked as they were, he could feel their apprehension and fear grow. Even they had heard tales of Force users, and a weapon that moved under its own guidance was a glaring sign.

The massive Krayt listed to the side as it tried to support its weight with only five legs.

It found it hard to maintain its balance, or to put any weight on its mangled right foreleg, but the Tusken should have known better than to take their attention off of the beast. Even though its eyes were hooded and dull with pain, and it seemed as if it would pass out from blood loss at any moment.

The Krayt probably couldn't distinguish between him and them, but it knew which characters had brought it anguish.

The Tusken paid for their preoccupation with Naruto in the next moment as the dragon bathed the sand in their blood. Its response to the lack of concentrated suppressing fire was deadly.

The huge tail came forth and cut a swathe through the bunched sand people whilst the beast's neck snaked down. The hinged jaws crashed down into raiders and desert sand alike, and jagged and rotten teeth crushed and sliced Tusken bone and flesh.

Naruto used the flurry of chaos to his advantage and his defensive disc suddenly discovered an attacking bent. It streaked away from him to crash into the survivors of the dragon's attack.

Sprawled on the ground and trying to avoid the Krayt's stomping feet, flashing teeth, and writhing tail the raiders were unprepared for the arrival of his blade.

It zipped impossibly from side to side as it propelled itself forward, imbued with the dark-side, and it let loose with terrible and satisfied grinding shrieks as it sawed through necks and torsos.

The combined ferocity of the unlikely allies broke their will and they turned tail.

The young raiders ran like cravens, for disgrace, and their continued failure to mark their rite of passage with success, was still better than continued loss of life. Already it would take their clan a generation to replace the lives which Naruto and the Krayt had just spent.

Finally it was Sith on Beast.

The Krayt was wounded; more than ready to retreat from the battlefield - however as the Tusken ran it noticed one small meat bag holding its ground. The dragon was infuriated by the sight of this arrogant creature, and its mind was not developed enough to make a link between the whirling metal blade that hovered by the _food's _side and it. Still mad with pain and in no mood to withdraw it attacked.

Time slowed as the gaping mouth rushed for Naruto. He glared into the lurid yellow eyes of the weakened predator; facing down its power with his fear and hate. The dark side granted him strength and he moved backwards in a Force assisted leap - manipulating both blades telekinetically as the dragon's head plunged down sending waves of grit to cloud up the air.

Naruto watched as the head resurfaced and emitted a deeply frustrated growl. All it had gotten was a mouthful of sand for its efforts.

He already knew how he would kill the brute. There was a weak point in the sinus cavity that his discblades could puncture. After doing so they would tear into its brain and vanquish it almost instantly.

However he still needed the opportunity. The Krayt had encounter difficulties with the raiders because of their great numbers. All species of the dragon had problems distinguishing two dimensional images from reality; even the Greater Krayt. It had wasted energy attacking the long shadows of the Tusken.

Although the Greater Krayt occasionally tried to go for his shadow it was of such size that it did not much matter, and he was forced to continue tumbling through the air.

But as he began to tire so did the dragon. Already he had sent his bigger disc to bite into the side of its head twice, and the monster seemed increasingly disorientated and dopey from blood loss as its head swayed from side to side and its movements slowed.

He toyed with it a bit before the final kill. Leaping onto its back and running along the length of its body as it tried to dislodge him futilely. It was finally beginning to dawn on the beast that this was no sand person.

Finally when the dragon was so exhausted that it could barely raise its neck, talk less of lunge at him, he finished the job. Both discblades pierced either side of its great nostrils with a sickening squelch. They bored into the beasts brain before bursting out of its skull causing blood to stream from both sides of its head as if it were some kind of fountain, and the Greater Krayt collapsed to the ground as the signals animating its mass abruptly ceased.

Like a true warrior the dragon died without a sound. Naruto was forced to spend a good ten minutes shielding his eyes and struggling not to splutter as he waited for the haze of dust that had been stirred up by the dragon's fall to settle.

He approached the still form as he holstered his fighting the disc. The bigger disc hovered by his side like a faithful dog, and he sent it towards the defeated dragon as if they were playing fetch.

The great discblade began to saw into the dragon cutting open its side where the stomach was. It was time to collect the dragon pearls he had come for.

As he waded into the gaping wound his blade had opened up, and plunged his hands deep into the Krayt's ichor and stomach acids he fervently hoped that he would find a flawless one, for a dragon of this size and age would have many gizzard stones, and nothing in life was guaranteed.

* * *

><p><strong>Aboard <strong>_**The Aventis **_

A week after killing the Greater Krayt Dragon Naruto was safely cocooned aboard the Aventis. It had only days to make the return trip to Mos Eisley, eager as he was with his selected dragon pearl in possession, but he had been forced to spend two more waiting for Aventis's new paint job to be completed.

The artist had not gotten rid of the matte noire finish completely. He had done up the ship in 'combat fatigue' dress – painting whorls of orange along the whole exterior. Naruto was pleased with his work and had paid him handsomely.

Now, finally, it was time. Despite his potential, and despite the strength he had gained in service to the Zeison Sha this was the only rite of passage that really mattered to him. After constructing his Lightsaber Naruto would truly stop being an apprentice, and he would set foot on the path that would make him a Lord of the Sith.

He had also taken one of the dragon's long bleached fangs.

After whittling it down from its curved edge into a straight edge with a multitool - he hollowed out the middle so that it became a tube and slipped the metal housing for his blade's components into the space; then he cut seven centimeters off of each end.

These small bits would serve as the emitter shroud, and pommel cap after he soldered them back on.

He drilled a small hole in the base of the piece that would serve as his pommel cap, and threaded a metal ring through. Now he could clip it to his belt. The other piece he carefully fashioned into his blade's emitter - taking extra care to make sure that he did not invert the emitter matrix.

Then he took the same multitool and began to carve along the hilt's face where the grip would be. The rough and wavy lines would ensure that it remained firmly within his grasp.

He was finished with the external. On the workbench before him were most of the components he would need to complete his blade.

The flawless dragon pearl was there.

The first thing he had done, after trimming it down to size, was attune it to the Force and to himself. In the process he came to know every molecule contained within it, but the doing had taken a long time and had left him weak and famished.

He had not rested or eaten however – instead continuing his work and constructing the hilt.

Next to it were the mundane components required in the construction of a blade; a new power cell he had found aboard, an insulator, an Adegan crystal (salvaged from an unfinished blade Traya had left behind) that he had cut so it would serve as his focusing lens, and the pieces of his hilt that would serve as pommel cap and blade emitter.

All that was left was to forge his focusing crystals and assemble the blade into one piece.

He stood from the bench fighting the fatigue that had crept up on him as he polished off the hilt and made sure that he had everything he needed to hand. He couldn't afford any mistakes when he began work on his focusing crystals.

He began to undress by pinching his form-suit at the wrist.

The armor responded to the command by peeling off of his body and seeping to the floor. In this state it resembled nothing so much as a puddle of spilled crude oil. Naruto knew that the heat from the small furnace would thoroughly engulf him and he had no wish to die or faint due to dehydration before he was finished.

He settled down in a meditative posture before the furnace. He had already loaded it with the synthetic components he needed, but he had made an unorthodox addition. The small Lingan crystal he had found. He hoped that the dark properties of the jewel would seep into his synth crystals and provide extra power to his blade.

He activated the furnace; flipping the switch with a casual mental brush, and closing his eyes Naruto sank into the process.

He already had experience of this having tuned his dragon pearl earlier, but this forging would be longer; longer and far more arduous.

He drifted away from reality and thought as he became one with the super heated and frenzied atoms inside the furnace. Instinctively his mind moved to arrange them in some kind of coherence and order… this was going to take a while.

* * *

><p><strong>AN**

"The next two chapters will focus on Sasuke, Hinata, Sakura, and Kakashi whilst introducing 'Terra (Shinobi)' to the galaxy. Although Naruto will be mentioned his next 'primary' chapter will be chapter eleven. Thanks for reading, please, please review!

**- Darklighter**


	9. Chapter 9: Homecoming

**SHGS - Chapter Nine: Homecoming**

**Disclaimer: I do not own, or profit, from Naruto, Star Wars, and all associated media. **

**A/N**

"Happy 2013!"

**- Darklighter**

"_Thoughts"_

"Speech"

"_**Abnormal sentient thoughts"**_

"**Abnormal sentient speech"**

* * *

><p><strong>Coruscant Spaceport<strong>

Sakura abandoned all the decorum her training at the Order had granted her, and the Jedi escort that was transferring to Corellia along with Hinata understood her completely. The Jedi were a compassionate lot at heart.

"Don't worry. It's going to be fine, really, I'll be ok," Hinata clutched at her awkwardly. Of the two she was more immersed in the ways of the Order, and there was also the fact that it was _**she **_going on the adventure, and she was the one who was excited.

"I know!" Sakura replied in a blubbery manner. She tried to compose herself, and gradually her back straightened. Her voice eased up.

"I'll miss you, and I truly wish you well," what she didn't say was that one of her last connections to home, in some ways one of her last connections to reality, was about to be torn away.

She hadn't gone out of her way to see Hinata before her transfer became apparent. They both knew this and it had been natural seeing as their talents so obviously lay in different directions, but now the impact of what they had meant to each other hit fully.

"All the best Sakura. Everything is going to go well. Mistress Pav says that Master Orton and Sasuke's last report was quite optimistic," they pressed cheeks together briefly.

The escorts had grown impatient. The engines of the simple transport began to glow dull amber.

"You'll be up there in no time. Are you really going on the Flagship?" There was a mischievous glint in Sakura's eye.

"Y-Yes," Hinata answered primly. "Coruscant likes to make an impression on the Corillean Order, and they with us. Delegations always take the Flagships.

"Still though," Sakura wanted to persist, but though the escorts found some small merriment in her teasing they ushered her friend away.

"Go well Knight Sakura," the Rodian said politely - chewing out the basic.

"Go well," she murmured as she watched Hinata board the transport. Soon Hinata was behind the Transparisteel. Her friend locked her opaque eyes on her one last time as she seated herself. She seemed to nod slightly, and she was definitely smiling.

Sakura nodded and smiled as well as the transport rose away. Everything would go well. Hinata was off for more training and Sasuke's report had been very optimistic. There were some worries still, but she was hopeful that she would soon play an active part in the fight against the Spice addiction.

As she left her steps grew more determined. Night was falling and a stiff wind blew the open space of the landing pad. There were few people about, and the city lights began to wink on. The lights were a cresting wave slowly that spread into the inky blackness miles below her position in the cloud. All the way down to the dark recesses of the planet's core – where they dimmed to ominous darkness.

_That hospice __**will **__get built._

* * *

><p><strong>Aboard the Aventis<strong>

The brilliant beam was opaquely white, for it gained its color from the Dragon Pearl that formed its heart. Yet every other second or so there was an angry pulse that ran through the blade. Rouge orange that mirrored the brilliant sunbursts that seemed to dwell at the heart of his modified Lingan crystal.

You would have thought that Naruto felt satisfaction as he gazed at the weapon. The grip was sure in his hand. He had rubbed black paint into the furrows he had carved into the Krayt's tooth. But he was gripped with a deep sense of aimlessness.

He had not even given further instructions to the Aventis. After the forging he had been too weak to stir for a while. He had thought that he would die. The heat from the furnace had sucked the life out of him, and left him over the brink.

He supposed that was the heart of the matter. It had not been the dark side that had saved him in that moment. Not the angry hate that he had been taught to stir under Deimus's proxy.

Instead he had been called back to the land of the living by a memory. It was a memory of the sunlight streaming through the trees, and the distant thumping of kunai hitting training stumps in secluded alcoves back home - back home outside the walls where there was just him.

Naruto stood up. The motion was not obviously violent, but he shut off his Lightsaber and clenched his jaw. He almost went to throw the weapon. However he still had his iron discipline and he restrained himself.

He was too nervous to holster it. He glanced at the training pit. The thrill of the duel could sate him.

_Not enough._

He strode out then. It was obvious that he had to go back. Traya had just hurdled her own trial, and Naruto knew that the freedom Deimus afforded him was illusory. He had thoroughly disrespected his direct superior - one that had been placed over him by the Deimus. If he did not act carefully the consequences would fall on his head.

In some ways the Dark Lord had shown a lot of faith in Naruto. He had played an instrumental role in the Yanibaree affair - as they were now calling Traya's coup on the General Net, and his good fortune had not come by through luck.

However by leaving Traya's side without gaining formal release he had indirectly disobeyed the Dark Lord himself...

There was a smile on Naruto's lips. His ship seemed to sense his eagerness. She lit the corridors of his approach for him, and he felt the subtle sway as she shifted her vectors.

His last command had given her free reign over most operations. Although many pilots gave strict orders to their vessels, or were limited by subpar A.I's. To do so with a War-Yacht of this caliber was suicide. Even when he was hacked in the ship could respond to threats much more capably than he - even though he was granted with the precognitive abilities of a Force user.

Three War-Yachts in tandem could fight a modern capital ship and escorts to a standstill, if their Pilots were light on the reins, and the vessels used to each other, then they were the ultimate space predators.

That was why the Chiss who had invented them - evolving the fighting craft from the renowned Chiss Claw - had remained untouchable over the centuries.

Typically they had expanded not by aggression, but by sheer dint of being better than everyone else. Their organized society was veiled behind a media blackout that would make any despot proud, but the technology behind the A.I's and sizeable vessels leaked out after about seven hundred years.

The soft lighting in the Pilot's chamber was soothing. Aventis was well used to her Master by now. Everything he encountered - from the holographic tapestries that greeted him in the dining and sleeping chambers; to the dueling opponents he faced in the pit were tailored to his specifications.

The Ship was zealous when it came to tracking his reading habits - arcane and technical, so it was no surprise that over the two week period it had taken for him to rehabilitate himself they had grown used to each other.

Now as he sat down, and her attachment cord snaked his helm down to nestle over his curly locks they both knew where they were going.

The evasive maneuvers Naruto had commanded the Aventis to undertake were child's play. What occupied her mind while she lurked in the Shadows of the Tatoo system was the search for Terra's coordinates.

This had taken a good while. Five days, twelve hours, 45 minutes, and 56 seconds give or take. Naruto had not even given her this job, but it was well within general parameters which were geared towards aiding the budding Sith Lord.

Of course she had downloaded all his memories the first time that he hacked in over a moon ago. That was a given. Knowing and observing him she could guess his moods long before he did, and this was only amplified by his being a Force user.

What Traya had taken years to accomplish he wished to do swiftly. Just as she had gained dominance on Yanibar he would also gain control over Terra. It was the only way he could stand before the Dark Lord as her equal when the time came to it.

Kami willing it came down to Saber and blade then. By that time Naruto knew that he would fancy his chances.

He settled down to wait. It felt as if Aventis shared the grin that lurked just out of sight. His arms came to rest on the pads of his command center, and his back was straight against the lean. Already lines filled his vision as the Aventis tracked every moving object within four hundred kilometers in a complex color code that he could barely comprehend.

Columns of scrolling data filled one side and he slipped into a sort of semi-conscious state. The trick of it was to let the Ship do all the work, and just go along for the ride. He needed to be aware of what was going on, and there was still space for blood and bone ingenuity, but he could not hope to process it all as she could, and would slow her down by many magnitudes it he tried to do so.

They were skipping from the Outer rim and into the Unknown Regions. It was no surprise that Terra had remained outside the reach of the Chiss Ascendancy which dominated from its ancestral homeland in the region. Despite Chiss technology and culture the Hyperspace lanes there were still treacherous, and vast swathes of it remained Unknown.

They knew however. Soon the first wavy blue lines of the first, of many, hyperspace tunnels manifested. With her thrusters purring the Aventis powered through. Her sudden de-stealthed form illuminated by the glare of her burning engines.

* * *

><p><strong>Coruscant underbelly<strong>

Uchiha Sasuke had never thought that his life would take the twists that it had. Ever since that fateful day when Itachi had single handedly destroyed their clan he had thought that he was destined for one thing and one thing only. He had lived and breathed thoughts of revenge.

But now here he was striding at the side of a Jedi Master - his Jedi Master.

They were dressed similarly, though Sasuke had his long black hair pulled back whilst his Master sported a crew cut, and downy facial coat.

Master Orton was not a very tall man. Sasuke already showed signs of outstripping him. But his eyes were bright, and under the soft folds of his Jedi robes he was thick compact muscle.

The only thing keeping the rapists and cut throats away from them were their dark green robes. As it was their Speeder had been stolen on the second day, and the hotel they were staying at on the lower mid-level 76 was charging them an obscene rolling rate.

The Jedi Order was doing things differently. Orton, with Sasuke's assistance, was heading a forked mission. On the one hand he was attempting to establish some kind of official contact with whoever was running the spice on Coruscant.

After the debacle in the Unknown Regions that had claimed the life of Knight Finton Stetil, and brought the three children to the academy there was no choice but to seek a compromise with the Hutts - who after losing several slaving vessels in a raid led by the Knight had become aware of his clandestine activities for the order.

There had been a dramatic upswing in the crime rate. The cut-throats seemed empowered. They were driven by fear of their Masters off-planet to such an extent that they forgot the strength of the planet's protective forces.

The backlash had affected all sides. Sasuke could not tell as he followed his Master, but these thoughts weighed heavily on the man. His shoulders drooped and his gait was not as sure. Now they were dealing with the criminals on their own terms, and in their own territory. That was the reason why they were on the walkways now surrounded on all sides by the artifact-like remnants of the Yuuzhan Vong invasion of millennia ago.

Though the Order would seek some sort of truce with the Hutts they also intended to install a permanent presence in the under levels. It was about time. They planned to establish a hospice for the treatment and cure of Spice addiction right at the heart of the plague, and guard it with their vigilant sword arms and illuminating blades.

"Do you think they know?" as always the mission came first, and Sasuke stayed faithful to his duty to learn.

"It's hard to tell. We are still a while away from the rendez vous point," Orton said. He eyed the clusters of sentients. There were milling Humans and assorted species. It was hard to tell under the strafing neon and lurid darkness of the underbelly.

"It would be wise to take them on away from the scent. We do not want to endanger our salesman," Master Orton instructed.

Sasuke nodded firmly and their steps shifted subtly. The young apprentice took position slightly ahead of his Master, and as they moved through the throng they angled away from their true destination.

The tension shifted. It was easy for Sasuke to tell. It seemed to rise and draw itself into a knot as the milling tough stopped lurking in the shadows, and their numbers increased. A normal Jedi may not have noticed, but his awakened Sharingan gave him a precognitive advantage that was savant like in its intensity.

The two Tomoe in his left eye whirled briefly while the single one contained in the right remained static. It had taken a long time and many explanations. But Orton was an adaptable teacher. He had only met with Kakashi once - when the Jounin and Mexes stopped off on a rare visit almost a year ago - and afterwards had guided Sasuke into a Force trance that had recreated the parameters needed for him to access his heritage.

Sasuke winced. He did not like to think about the vision he had witnessed, facing the blond boy who had been dead-last in the class, in that alternate telling. He did not like how close the competition had been, and though he was loathe admitting it he did not like how that alternate self had turned out.

Sasuke knew that this last was because of his time with the Order. They changed you gradually. Piece by piece until you didn't recognize what you were anymore, and you did not know what they intended you to be.

But all of this is not for the moment. The tension has reached its crescendo. The surrounding mob is ready for action. Glints of hidden weapons can now be seen - the occasional vibroblade and a proliferation of blasters.

Master Orton by his side raises a single questioning eyebrow bringing a smile to Sasuke's mind. They go for their weapons casually.

"It always seems to come down to this," Sasuke commented.

"Don't worry dear apprentice," Orton smiled as three shimmering blue blades took flight. The Master had a long dueling saber gripped in each hand while his apprentice had opted to keep his green guard shoto in reserve. "One day you'll experience the thrill of boring negotiations."

They moved together. With the ease of habit Sasuke slipped into his Master's slipstream. Now that danger had shown itself the time for learning how to judge a situation was past, and Orton would take point - facing the brunt of the danger.

The criminals reacted with waves of blaster fire, and as they parried the beams panic broke out. There had been normal people in the throng. Poor people, and many of them addicts, but innocents nonetheless.

Sasuke felt his neck tense as he saw his Master's expressive eyebrows furrow. "Watch out for them," he instructed simply. Sasuke knew that he had his Master's trust completely so a reply was not necessary.

The fight was not to their favor, and as they blocked and evaded through the rapidly dispersing crowds, and occasionally sent a beam back into an attacker instead of up and away they retreated.

Orton was skilled in a modern variant of Makashi. This adaptation of Form II bolstered itself with aggressive maneuvers taken from Vaapad, and some evasive actions from Ataru, but it was still not geared for defensive play against blaster rifles - especially when they were gathered in large numbers.

Their retreat became grim. Sasuke had learned all of his saber work from his Master, and he found himself in a similar predicament. His blazing eyes darted around scrutinizing everything as they leaped away from the advancing horde. Here and there were strewn the bodies of those they had hit, and civilians that had perished. They fought on.

By this time Sasuke had activated his guard shoto. Its burning length ran in reverse down his left hand, and he held the slightly cumbersome grip surely. Master Orton was a steady presence by his side. You would not have thought that the Jedi Master was experiencing any stylistic difficulties from the way he sent the bolts back at the men - scattering them and occasionally scoring a blow - while covering the rare slips of his apprentice.

They were both fully sunk in the Force, and most of their communication was non-verbal, but Sasuke wanted to be sure he understood his Master's intentions. He had spied a few escape routes. There was one that would lead to a pull down ladder to a nearby overhang. It would probably take them through an access hatch for maintenance tunnels in the inner structure, and another that was on foot, but straight through the thickest group of killers.

Typically Orton was eyeing up the later.

"Are you really sure we should do this?" Sasuke was calm. A Transhodian broke out of the pack. His vibroblade had serrated edges that were dull from a lack of proper maintenance and care. Sasuke suppressed the urge to grimace as the beast ducked in. It wore a painted smile, but the bubbling laughter in its throat was soon cut short. His Shoto clashed against the enemy's weapon. Despite the greater power of the leathery reptile his instincts guarded his steps around.

He spun. The point of his primary saber was at the neck but he adjusted the pitch at the last instant. He sheared the weapon at the hilt cauterizing some fingers in the process. The scream came to him slow. Everything came slowly when he was fighting with full Sharingan. Everything that was except for Master Orton who still seemed to move with consummate ease during the sparring sessions they shared.

Sasuke saw approval in his Master's eyes. The Jedi had moved forward now that his apprentice was directly threatened.

"I suppose we are," some in the Order may have condemned Orton, for there was no regret in his voice as he belatedly responded to his apprentice.

Perhaps the mob sensed the change, for the constant stream of rifle fire Orton had been parrying cooled for the instant. This proved to be the groups undoing.

Orton strode forward moving in darting runs and superhuman twists. His Lightsabers began to claim wrists, and his squat frame hurtled right into the unarmored forms of their attackers.

Cries began to ring out as they began to fall back, but it was already too late. The worst was still to come. Master Orton belonged to the same school of thought as the late Finton Stetil. Actually it was a great political coup that they had retained control of the anti-spice operation after Finton's demise. They drew on Luker Skywalker's example to justify the use of so called Emerald Force Lightning in battle.

This weapon is terrifying, and many say it is too close to the dark for any Jedi to step, but Orton had held his seat on the Council for nearing a decade, and he was quietly determined to prove the worth of his sect to the Order at large.

The Transhodians, Twi'leks, Rodians, and Humans felt the full brunt of his green Lightning attack. A few scampered to safety. He did not track after them. As he bound forward Orton's only aim was to clear a path, and Sasuke sprinted full out, all attempts to attack or defend himself forgotten as he fell into his Master's wake.

It seemed as if Orton gripped crackling energy in his fists as he fought. His punches, with the grip of his sword firmly in hand, left craters in the bodies of his victims, and worse sparks of power rushed out from those crushed souls to subdue their nearby compatriots.

His azure blades were still active. The hilt and mechanisms within protected by the specialized rubber grip that he used.

Sasuke had emulated his Master, and both his weapons featured a similar bulky grip that took some adapting to. He didn't have even a quarter of Master Orton's finesse though, and for the moment he learned as he watched his Master punch out a path.'

Finally the way was clear. The criminals balked at their fallen number, although there were very few dead, this was a gang that the Hutt had paid and armed. But the strength of the enemy they faced had not been fully imprinted on the poor beings.

There was the pounding of footsteps. The surviving members of the gang went one way and they the other as they broke through and the battle was abandoned. The external noises of the city seemed to flood back into his awareness as Sasuke followed his Master.

After the combination of fighting and running the exertion was getting to him and he began to pant. He longed for their stolen Speeder.

"Do you think Vasuya sent them?" he asked.

"I don't think anything! There will be time enough for thinking when we get back to the hotel. We've just been through a fight for our lives, and there is nothing to get you going like fleeing the scene of a thousand lawsuits whilst planetary authorities are no doubt beginning to swarm!"

Sasuke let an uncharacteristic smile go. Orton had a way of bringing them out of him. "I still wish we you hadn't let our Speeder get stolen," he said.

"I can't do _everything!" _there was still joy and bon vivre on Orton's voice.

* * *

><p><strong>Terra<strong>

This was _**not **_the system he left. Naruto didn't know what obstacles Deimus had faced smuggling him off Terra. He had been unconscious at the time. But he was sure that there had not been _**two **_A.I governed orbital emplacements guarding the approach to the world, or that there would be no less than five factories churning goods out in the cold dark of space.

His fists were still clenched from the shock, and adrenaline flowed through him freely. They had almost been discovered. They had blazed into the system expecting to find it dead to technology, and had only remained stealthed because the Aventis could respond _that_ much quicker to variables than anything else out there.

He was lucky that his luck had held because the defensive emplacements were top of the line. They were designed to hold off multiple attacking Capital Ships, and they had firing ranges that crossed the volume of systems. He couldn't even begin to understand where that kind of impetus and investment had come from, and his goals which had seemed so easily attainable were now looking out of reach.

The situation was dire and his half formed plans were obsolete.

Slowly they eased themselves into the system. Terra was a bright spot. Its denizens were nascent when it came to spaceflight, but there was evidence to suggest that they had started trade with nearby systems. By now the Chiss would be aware of them, so there was no doubt that they were abiding by the regulations which governed the star faring nations of the Unknown Regions.

The defensive emplacements that had almost blown them out of the wastes was Chiss by design, so Naruto, mind churning, tried to link them to everything he saw.

It was fairly easy to come to grips with the situation, and he calmed down as they neared the planet. They were still undetected, and he was pleased to see that not too much of the planet had been developed.

He supposed that the natives did not have the time needed to build on their own soil, and that they probably still couldn't bear scar their home. They had invested the vast majority of their manufacturing capabilities off-planet, and slowly he understood why they had been forced to invest in two system emplacements.

Idly he wondered who was running the science behind all of this. It had only been three years, and though he knew his people would be learning the new skills they needed as quickly as they could not enough time had passed. Logic dictated that there was some outside interference.

He knew it wasn't the Chiss. Meddling to that extent just wasn't the style behind their modern era politics - which he had studied extensively as they were one of the few Galactic players left. They had sold the emplacements to Terra in the interests of peace - especially as the planet was in their backyard. Everyone knew that Chiss emplacements were no use against Chiss armadas, and the gift was one that went both ways.

Naruto didn't know what that left him with, but it was a start. It was almost time to land. Aventis had been darting around the perimeter of the defensive screen around the planet. Sniffing at its edges and searching for a gap. The scanning sensors on planet were of a high caliber, and they performed efficient sweeps but that alone was not enough, and Terra did not have enough trained pilots to mount an effective complementing guard.

Eventually they broke through. Naruto felt a thrill rise inside of him as Aventis's hull glowed a soft red. They descended so quickly that in an instant the blackness of unreal space had broken into the painted brilliance of a living world - roiling clouds and brilliant sunlight over a spread of brown stained farmland and expansive green - the blue of the waters foaming at the tips with frothing white to soothe the soul.

_Fuck... I missed this place._

* * *

><p><strong>AN**

Tada! Please review!


	10. Chapter 10: Yugakure

**SHGS - Chapter Ten: Yugakure**

**Disclaimer: I do not own, or profit, from Naruto, Star Wars, and all associated media. **

**A/N**

"I got a very interesting unmarked review. In response I guess reviews will come as they will. I deliberately set the timeline after the regular Star Wars continuity so as to throw more light on the characters from Kishimoto's universe. I hope that as this story reaches a higher word count more people will read it through and review."

**- Darklighter**

"_Thoughts"_

"Speech"

"_**Abnormal sentient thoughts"**_

"**Abnormal sentient speech"**

* * *

><p><strong>Terra, <strong>

**Yugakure in the Land of Hot Water.**

**The expanding Capital City of Terra.**

**751 ABY**

So the first round is now over. By now Osvaldus has lived on Terra for six years. Four of them openly after he had slain the Jedi Knight named Finton Stetil without his Lightsaber, and in Danzo's full view.

They had engaged in a titanic battle with Force Lightning. He had been surprised and taken aback by the intensity of the Emerald beams that the Knight had put forth, and initially he had been subdued. The glittering daggers that Osvaldus had honed over numerous killings, practice sessions, and seething meditations had been suppressed.

But the Jedi Knight had shown mercy. Bizarrely that tended to be the way with those pure ones who had never really survived an encounter with a follower of the Dark. Osvaldus had struck him down in a rage afterwards. The man's sacrifice had allowed his partner to escape with the precious War-Yacht – along with several of the natives, and he alongside Danzo's ANBU squads had been unable to stop it from happening.

Outside the city continued on its stately tread. It had the vibrancy all new habitations had when faced with a sudden influx of crowds. The sullen faces of the water country natives were by now overwhelmed by the mixed bag of citizens from the Lands of Fire and Lightning. Along with a sprinkling of enterprising souls from the other allied lands.

Everywhere there was there were Shinobi. To a being they wore the ceremonial forehead protector of the world. A simple circle divided into four quarters by straight bars of etched lines.

Still it was possible to distinguish between them by the cloth badges on their arms, and by their weapons.

Looking on through the bay windows he could see that out of all the Shinobi who were milling watchfully through the throng his own missing-nin were poorly armed.

He had no control over the Quarter master's office, and this was plain to see in the inefficient and bulky personal shield generators his own troops had slung across the back. The units were so unlike the compact and combat friendly generators that perched on the bodies of the regular allied forces.

Osvaldus was nestled in the din and clatter of it all alongside the other presumptive rulers of the world spread.

To name it city would draw away from the accomplishments of the cut throats and intellectuals who had been pulled into his net.

Long ago Yugakure had stopped being a Hidden Village, and become a trading town. The people had a long memory. They remembered Hidan from Akatsuki who he had to keep out of the city, and they remembered the suffering they had felt during recent global wars.

He was not alone of course. He was not lording it over the rest, nor was he placed in a particularly high ranking position.

The Leaf and the Cloud dominated the apex points of the council chamber, and an equidistant distant away and to the sides sat the Kages of the Stone and of Water.

The Lands of Fire and Lightning had ceded sovereign territories in order to create the new military state. The bulk of the new forces were drawn from their ranks, and the Kages of Stone and Water were treated according to the troop numbers they committed to any given cause at a time.

Osvaldus did not have a seat. All the Kage's were aware and wary of his growing power - even Danzo who had sponsored him into this position, and so they sought to humble him.

Of course the old man of the group Ōnoki. The grizzled Tsuchikage was starting to fall into true old age, but he was still a tough old warrior. Osvaldus was late to realize it but he had stopped pacing and he had been staring. He wondered if the grizzled old warrior caught the malice held in his gaze in that instant. It certainly seemed like it, for the Shinobi tightened his posture in his high backed seat, and the bald plate of his head seemed to glisten in challenge.

Osvaldus worried about him because he kept one foot in with their alliance, but persisted in taking independent contracts with forces comprised from only his Village - disregarding the censures and interstellar trade restrictions the Council had slapped on his Earth home as a result.

On the other hand he was better off than some of the smaller nations which had followed the lead of the Wind Country, and as a result were being bled dry of their populations as 'normal' people fled the strictures of their hidebound Shinobi guards, and embraced the comparative hope of the ongoing industrial revolution.

"The first reports of our activities have begun to spread to the General Nets. As you predicted," there was grudging respect in Yagura's voice - Yagura who was the Fourth Mizukage in the Water's history.

Like Osvaldus Yagura was not what he seemed to be. The animosity in his voice sprang from the other Council upon which they dueled. The infighting congregation of Akatsuki members who secretly, and to a certain extent openly, governed all the Missing-nin who had taken up the amnesty.

Osvaldus smiled at Tobi his coconspirator. On that other Council he was not ranked quite as highly as he was out here in the open where he took the humiliating seat less station the Kage had given him, and stood over them as if he were a king governing his court.

"Yes. As I have been telling you all for many moons," out here he was not dealing with the deadly machinations of Akatsuki. He could afford to be curt with Yagura.

"What does this mean for the general effort? We are still a long way off being able to mount a strike at the Hutts,"** A **was the brimming Fourth Raikage of the Lightning.

He was young and innovative - brash even. He had quickly grasped the logic behind offering an amnesty to all Missing-nin. And in truth Osvaldus thought that in burdening him with the responsibility of caring for them **A **had intended to let him fail.

The Raikage had wanted it proved to the missing-nin that despite their distaste for the fact they would have to be governed by the Kage, and that they would always be second class nin when contrasted with their loyal brethren. He had attempted to use Osvaldus the upstart outsider to drive home this position.

Now **A **had learned his lesson. He adapted to the failure of his plan, and was the only member of the Council that _truly _listened to what Osvaldus said, and didn't say. He was dangerous.

"I'm not yet sure. It's hard to tell with the media corporations," he answered honestly.

"They're a bunch of squawking merchants from the way you describe it," **A **snorted. On some things he agreed with the polished off-world politician who he knew was a deadly as a cornered Asp in a fight.

"That they are," Osvaldus bestowed a smile upon all of them. This was where the Council, and even Akatsuki, barring the treacherous Orochimaru, had made a grave mistake. They had not acted quickly enough in claiming his unique knowledge for themselves - while he had invested much time imparting his advantage to his followers.

"But trying to predict which way the news will blow is harder than trying to divine the future. Let it be said that the increased scrutiny will play its part. We should not act the part of cowards and deter just because of it. Nothing good will come from that."

Even though his people got the scraps in the current dispensation he had already gained permission to construct the planet's sixth stellar factory to arm his missing-nin just like the others did. The Lands of Water and Stone owned one factory each. So did the Fire and Lightning – although those two greater nations shared another installment in addition.

Osvaldus permitted himself a tiny bit of happiness. The fliers and technicians under his command – pulled from the dissatisfied malcontents on planet and greedy never do wells from worlds away – who had just the right blend of slavish loyalty and aggression towards authority meshed well with the rabid missing-nin he commanded.

Together his unit was quickly becoming the most formidable one the Shinobi had to offer - especially given the eagerness of his 'normal' Fliers and Techs to prove themselves to their gifted brethren.

"I think we should begin to track all interstellar transmissions related to us and the various jobs we take. Especially those related to the traditional bounty hunting guilds. You can be sure that they will not appreciate having new players in their back-yards," typically Danzo was relentless in his drive to protect a singular thing - his planet.

"Y-yes," Osvaldus agreed hesitantly. "That would be wise."

He had expected the leader of the Leaf to be most amenable to his needs, but the man was proving himself to be an intractable foe.

_Damned… but famed will of Fire…_

He had to hold back an unwanted grimace. His quest to dominate this planet wasn't proving as easy as he had thought. This was Sabaac on Spice – the hands everyone held were a whirling kaleidoscope.

* * *

><p><strong>Konoha<strong>

It took Naruto a couple of hours to realize that they had crossed into the New Year. That it had been Four years since he left Konoha. By this planet's reckoning towards the end of the year he would turn fourteen. Time passed quickly.

The fireworks startled him, and that was why his thoughts turned this way as he walked idly. His holstered Discblades did not look out of place here where such bladed weapons were common, but Shinobi had become rare in his home town, and he feared the noise they made as he starred would scare the few passersby.

It had gone past twelve. The revelers had gathered on the bridge which overlooked one of the medium sized streams which fed the Village valley.

The wooden structure of the span was at odds with the ancient protocol droid that trotted on weary steps. It was a servitor for the young family that watched from this vantage point. Konoha was vast, but so sprawled as to give an idyllic image. There were hundreds of scenes such as this laid out beneath the forest canopy.

The buzz of a mosquito hissed at his ear and he slapped at in impatiently. His eyes trailed away from the couple and their brood of angelic daughters as he wandered on. The sharp cerulean glints lurked beneath the heavy and unadorned forehead he wore.

The mother soon spotted him, and took him for the image he wished to portray. She took in the dangerous appearance of a travelling missing-nin on his way to Yugakure to enlist with the planetary forces. She gestured abruptly to her family and they moved on quickly. Naruto decided not to pay them much notice.

Going on two years ago Terra had begun to work closely with the Chiss as their primary enforcers in the region he gathered.

Although there were a few sparse pockets of alien intelligence scattered in the various Elemental Nations there were not that many Chiss. Most of them were clustered in their embassy - which Naruto gleaned was in the Land of Hot water.

He felt naked without his Form suit - stashed as it was aboard the Aventis in the concealing cave Ship had scanned out on a beachhead in the eastern corner of the Fire Country.

The spot was inconvenient as he could not access the larger towns in his native country, and their varied department stores. Naruto had been forced to stealth his Form suit and sneak into an isolated grain-milling stead to steal clothes.

He had felt remorse for the poor appropriately sized hand - a young man who had invested in soft and comfortable boots, and an easy fitting dark brown vest and pantaloons. He had not felt like a thief when he liberated the Aventis from Mara's clutches, but he did in that moment.

Yet now he had reached Konoha. If the evidence of the changes that had come to his home planet had not been spoken about in casual presence within his earshot on the way over then he would have experienced a deeper level of culture shock.

For over three years the populace had adapted, and now in the fourth year they celebrated their achievements.

The evidence of high technology was everywhere before his eyes. Artfully concealed within the natural surroundings for which Konoha was so famed. The merchant class had prospered, and there had been a reversal of roles.

The middle-class districts which had once proceeded upon a stately march into unclaimed and virgin forest now loomed over the noble quarters which looked ancient and picturesque by comparison.

The delicate crafted wood manses of those ancient lineages were bullied by the towering skylines of the Transparisteel rises that housed the poor quarters, and the sullen behemoths that housed the kings and queens of industry.

Naruto shook his head sadly. The Kage monument had become a tourist attraction. During the daytime he heard the twisted perversion of untold foreign dialects as he tried to navigate his way through his unfamiliar home, and a part of him empathized with the put upon nobles even though they had once regarded him as less than a street urchin.

_Where are all the Shinobi?_

It was the one question he wanted to ask, but the one question that would draw unnecessary attention. Naruto rued his lack of interest when Traya had sought to impart the ways of the mind trick to him.

He skirted the issue in the mornings when he bartered for food at the market. Although his galactic coinage was commonplace the hagglers were the same old thieves, and they would talk easily of the great new nation arising in the North East, but they were mum when it came to military matters - as it should have been. Things hadn't changed that rapidly.

Naruto adopted a rueful gait as he walked through the night. Light shadows were cast all about as the ongoing firework display continued its predictable course. The tentative threads of his characteristic smile began to weave themselves once more as he entered dense areas.

He was dressed in the mill hand's plain clothes, and he had his Lightsaber concealed in a convenient scroll he had purchased, and wore slung at the small of his back in the characteristic manner of Shinobi the world over.

There were not many military shops and the stock that they held was limited, but Naruto had been able to purchase some fairly cheap mail links. They were made of modern light alloys, and the weight of this reached him. Modernization had infiltrated the military works quickly.

Konoha must have invested most of her arms in the Forces commanded out of Yugakure he decided. It was the only way to counter the Cloud whose Nation was less populated, but who had a higher percentage of serving Shinobi.

He was now guided within the press. It was hard enough to walk as one willed within normal crowds, but the people out here in the center of town were ready for celebration. Eventually however he was able to head up to the North Eastern gates. From here it would be a long journey on foot, but he had to stay within character.

Better the people he encountered wondered what he had done to become a missing-nin so young as opposed to their wondering what he was doing with a space craft.

Times had really changed. The guards at the gates were normal people, and they let him out without fuss.

* * *

><p><strong>The road to Yugakure<strong>

It was a good road he decided. Seen in the light of day after his overnight stop at a ramshackle inn it compared favorably with almost any other road he had set foot on. The way was smoothed out, and he discovered that the journey would not take half as long as he had thought. During the daytime there were large public Speeders. These ferried people on the highway, and hardly encountered any competitors in the form of privately owned vehicles – although a few of these touted their horns proudly.

The public transport seemed to rattle as they pressed through. Naruto was seated squashed up against an older lady and a young boy. The pair of them complained about the harnessed edges of his Discblades poking at them so incessantly that he was forced to remove his harness and hold the folded material on his lap.

By this time he was no longer shy of the Galactic accent he had picked up, and his words did not come out stilted from lack of practice. He did the above grudgingly annoyed to have to displace his weapons, and he gave them back as good as they got. In truth they were lucky that they did not complain about the scroll at the small of his back. His temper was running thin, and he would only regret slaughtering all within after the deed was done and it was already too late.

They rattled on. It seemed as if the transport was going to stop at every single inconsequential small town on their way through and Naruto grew bored. His gaze was inexorably pulled to the window, so he gazed out.

The hours elapsed. People got on and off. Somehow as they neared the City suburbs the crowds on the vehicle seemed to increase, and when the density was ripe Naruto felt sure that they were close to the final destination.

He was right. Civilians began to stand up with that eager air that many hold at the end of a long trip. There were a few familiar stalwart faces that had been with him on the journey most of the way. They shared impatient smiles. They were all waiting for the doors to open so that they could be released.

The doors opened. Before Naruto could stride out highly experienced travelers dominated the space, pulling down their luggage and herding their large families, he was forced to wait as they milled and struggled through, but enough of them gained the exit for him to also proceed.

It was night time yet again. Reluctantly he acknowledged his stomach rumblings. From the brief taste he was getting of the entry station he was sure that Yugakure was massive. Large enough to accommodate the bodies needed to care for the huge Shinobi army which constantly set off from the Planet's sole space-sport in the center of the city. Even now when they should have been asleep the dull boom of roaring engines could be heard as the bounty hunting Shinobi teams took their ancient trade to the stars.

Naruto longed for the familiar solitude that he had grown accustomed to whilst he was swallowed by the magnificent Aventis. He missed the calm of Sha Kalan, and the isolated intensity of Traya's homestead on Yanibar. He still did not know what to make of his home planet. There had been a part of Naruto which was expecting to be confronted with the Idyllic setting of his childhood. A very large part of him had irrationally expected that they would all remain the same, and that the secrets of the galaxy would remain with him alone.

He shifted his shoulders uncomfortably. There were ample signs showing the locations of the various hotels that had leased out space in the ground transport arrival station. He followed one at random. There was no point turning up at the recruitment center late, and he had to admit that he still needed time to reflect and gather himself.

* * *

><p>"Nathaniel. Nathaniel Uzumate," Naruto wondered whether people tired of asking his name as much as he tired of giving it. It seemed as if every conversation he had kicked off with the pleasantry, and he was starting to get sick of it.<p>

"You're just another missing-nin with a pseudonym huh? Let me guess. You aren't going to disclose your Village of origin, or will you?" the interviewer's hostile voice barked at him. The man was a full and loyal Shinobi, and he wore the circular emblem along with the rest of them. However from the squad marking tied to his bicep you could discern his Village. The Shinobi had taken to using archaic symbols and references on the simple kerchiefs to draw attention to their origins – although there were a few squads who were truly mixed, and boasted of symbols that harkened to the heritages of multiple Hidden Villages.

The other men and women seated with the interview were united in their dislike for him as a missing-nin. The general ranks and lower level officers did not fully appreciate having a body of troops with nothing to lose to take on the risky assignments, and they chafed at the glory that the missing-nin gained in heated battle.

"No. According to the wording of the amnesty I don't have to tell you where I hail from," Naruto said simply.

"He sounds like a Fire Nation lad, or thereabouts," one of the perceptive interviewers stated. The others turned their attention to him briefly, but eventually their focus was back on Naruto.

"It's of no great importance," his primary interviewer said finally. The man shifted in his seat. The man was originally from the Cloud, and he was eager to be done with the slightly gangly youth and be done with it. He did not appreciate the hard glint in the blond boy's eyes, and he did not appreciate the fact that his Nation of origin had labeled him a bad egg at such a young age. Usually it took quite a bit longer for one to be castigated, and he did not know what to think of his superiors who had seen fit to include such types in the planet's workings.

"You realize there will be a test? We don't admit just any riff-raff," he said in dismissal.

"Whenever you're ready," Naruto said promptly. From the way he eyed up the interviewer he left no one in any doubt as to who he was challenging. His bravado brought a few smiles to the faces of the more accepting and seasoned Jounin.

"Not with me fool! Report in tomorrow with the rest of your kind – you can identify the place from the stink of all you vermin."

"Will you give me any specifics on this test?" Naruto asked as he turned to go. He knew that the man would not help him but there was nothing lost in trying.

"Find out yourself Nathaniel," the interviewer said petulantly. The boy had knocked him off of his stride slightly. Quite a lot of the missing-nin that turned themselves in were off-kilter and wary of the amnesty all being some elaborate ruse. Many of them were glad to have been given a reprieve from the implacable course of Shinobi justice, and they acted with appropriate deference and respect, but there were some – like the young boy he watched depart- who were possessed of a confidence the match for any fully loyal ninja, and these caused them all to be wary.

Naruto did not know what irked him more; the fact that he was having to parade around the galaxy swinging his false name Nathaniel, or the fact that he was constantly being delayed. Every day it seemed like he had to… wait for the next day.

He ambled into his hotel. The owner was a whirl as the man busied himself around the place. Naruto had chosen this place because he remembered the man. Believe it or not he remembered the man and his daughter – although they did not recognize the taciturn angular young warrior who graced their table at night and lodged in an attic flat they had rented out to him for the year.

It was the guy from the Ramen shop. Naruto did not remember his name, but he had been stunned to see the same firmly shut eyes and wide square face after he had walked in dripping wet from the rain – a dozen other rejected establishments left in his trail.

It turned out that the kind sir had been one of the first people to relocate to the city, and had spent his meager saving early on a cheap plot of land that had developed into prime real estate.

He had held out, and upon being one of the last early buyers to sell he had handed over his tiny plot for a sum that dwarfed the comparative profit of quite a few early movers.

With the money he had invested in his hotel. It stood proudly at a fork in the road in the southern part of town. The buildings here were constructed in a modern style that had sprung up and was of yet unnamed. In the backyard lurked the shed where all the heavy duty machinery was kept - objects such as the washer and even space to bring Speeders in for the resident mechanic. This backyard was in truth a backyard, for the new city had imported the horticultural tendencies of his Fire folk and melded it with the cool efficiency of the Lightning Country.

The building was round and extended many level above and below. This was a city built to be defended by Shinobi, so a slab of Straight Square concrete lay on the dome of the building, and on the domes of all its neighbors.

The only drawback was its position at the crossroads. There was always a bustling crowd outside. Meat hawkers and passer-by competing with honking Speeders and animal drawn carts – the mélange was a true clash of cultures, and it grated on Naruto's sensibilities.

He was thankful that he had been desperate at the time, and that he had pressed on inside. He was shy to introduce himself properly to the man and his daughter, speak less of ask for their names, but he managed to get by with murmurs and tilting his head away from them. He did not want them to recognize him, and he was even considering sheering his long curls so as to appear different, it would not do for anyone to ask unnecessary questions related to Konoha - especially not if they were the ones doing the asking.

He graced the daughter with a rare smile. She was manning the kitchens valiantly, and her rapidly moving form was visible through the clear glass as she ordered the servitors about.

The robots hastened to react to her commands and they were serving up a steady stream of ramen. The smell of the establishment's signature dish was what had drawn him in despite the stinking crowds almost half a moon ago now. Naruto was not hungry however, and he let himself up the stairs – unlocking the door of the private way with the key only permanent residents such as he possessed.

The girl did not notice him. She was obviously very busy, and as her father welcomed new guests who were staying for shorter durations, she martialed food for the seated residents who were having splendid discussion in the spacious and appointed dining area.

The light which had flooded the stair area bled away as he turned another key and entered his room. He would rest for the moment. He still intended to make an impression, and tomorrow would mark his first chance to do so in the proper traditions of his people.

* * *

><p><strong>Central Training Grounds (C.T.G)<strong>

**Combined arms recruitment block 142**

They all stood there in a line oppressed by the vengeful sun which gave the lakes of the Land of Hot Water their name.

They stood in neat unfamiliar rows - rows that were sorted for height with the shortest at the fore. Naruto lurked about a quarter of the way from the end of his bulky box. They were all missing-nin here and the hardened faces of his companions contrasted harshly with the thin faces of the men and women in the other two lines. These were intellectuals, and criminal types that had shown aptitude for the foreign technology. They would be the ones learning how to operate pilot the machines and operate the greater tech that would allow their unit to serve as one well-oiled machine.

Naruto noticed how they seemed ill on their feet, and how they bore angry red splotches at the neck or even at the base of their shaven temples. They had all received implants such as his, which he concealed under the collar of his chain durasteel vest, and if he had not been fortunate enough to recuperate in a tank of Bacta he would no doubt feel the same pain that they were going through.

"You are all shit, and from this day forth it is my right and my right alone, my right and the right of my officers, to flush you down the drain and out of existence like the traitorous bunches of has-been you all are and will be!"

The Jounin in charge of induction had a typical bellow, but he knew how to flourish his words. Naruto enjoyed the listen although he kept his face impassive and his hands firmly to the side. He had shaved his hair earlier in the morning, and if anything he looked younger. Sixteen or seventeen years old instead of eighteen or nineteen – in truth he was even younger for he was going to celebrate his fourteenth birthday at the end of the year.

"You shits now belong to me. I will do with you as I will. Listen to what I say – turn your provincial ears to my voice and maybe, just maybe, I will judge you worthy enough to join the rest of your brothers and sisters on battlefields untold.

"The time for fighting amongst ourselves is now over brother shits! Any one of you forgets that and he's out of here in a body bag, and we won't mark the field where we lay you. This is what we've trained for. They came to Konoha with fire and blaster. I'm not from there myself, and I never thought I would say this, but it's us versus them. Never you forget that, and never think your worth more to me than my shit, and we may just get along fine."


	11. Chapter 11: Amongst The Traitors

**SHGS - Chapter Eleven: Amongst the Traitors **

**Disclaimer: I do not own, or profit, from Naruto, Star Wars, and all associated media. **

"_Thoughts"_

"Speech"

"_**Abnormal sentient thoughts"**_

"**Abnormal sentient speech"**

* * *

><p><strong>AN **

"This is a quick note for all of those who also read DAIQ. That story is not abandoned or dead. As I stated a bit earlier I am going through all of the old chapters and bringing them up to my current standard. There simply won't be any updates of that story until I feel it is up to scratch and I am ready to post the new chapters. There really isn't any other way to do it because if I just plow ahead then the modifications will never get done, and it will all be too overwhelming. I am more likely to give up on the story in those circumstances – just saying – because to write well I have to be artistically satisfied with what I have produced.

So… please enjoy chapter eleven of SHGS!"

**- Darklighter**

* * *

><p><strong>Central Training Grounds (C.T.G)<strong>

"Duck down! Duck down!" he yelled, but Naruto's warning was useless as the hapless squad member soon became engulfed in a conflagration of blaster fire.

The fool had broken cover. He had too much faith in the new personal shield generator (P.S.G) he had been provided with, and the violet flash of protective energy it created was soon overwhelmed by the attacking rays. The inexperienced Shinobi's body was flung back down from his assailing position to thump awkwardly besides them all.

The earth was grim and slick with blood while the baleful orb of this world's sun hung majestically in its swollen grace just over the western ridgeline of towering mountains.

The heat stoked the internal furnace of his frustration to new heights, and beads of sweat rode freely down his freshly shaven scalp unsettling the short coarse blond hairs that remained.

There were five Mech pilots in his troop, but the converted civilians had to keep the squat legged and lithe weapons away from the front. He railed at this fact because the mobile weapons platforms could deal much more damage than his lot - however their obvious silhouettes would be shredded to atoms by the cannon which presently dominated the fight.

"You! On me!" he yelled over the resounding crash of ongoing battle - picking out a young and terrified looking Shinobi who didn't look like he was very far into his twenties.

The man scurried forward – eager to have someone to obey, and if Naruto had been granted a bird's eye view over the action he would have seen his whole group huddled in the muddy trench.

To the North of their position and further down the line teams of Missing-nin in training surged ahead or ceded ground dearly. While the meshed forms of the defenders dug in in front of a hill sloshed around in their own trench; which was filled almost half-way - from earlier in the battle when a particularly enterprising Shinobi had attempted to flood their defensive positions using waters from the river that snaked along the lines of conflict.

The scream of ricocheting Jutsu fought for supremacy with the constant ordered whine of battle rifles. Overhead there were dull and supersonic booms as the Fang interceptors, which had been sourced for other civilian members of the troop, rode the winds - locked in desperate conflict with the enemies' own air support.

They had been thrown right into the deep end. Everything was chaos and someone had to take control.

"The rest of you circle around the group posted on that hill. They're killing the op from that vantage," he glared out at the huddled faces.

He received a couple of grim nods for his efforts. Although they were in a simulation the goggles that they strapped on to their faces produced a highly realistic experience. Electricity would surge through the vests they wore when they were the recipients of a killing blow - locking them into paralysis.

"No one put you over us," there was always at least one negative response.

Typically challenge would come from the squad's burliest member, but in this case it came from a reedy woman with a nose that brought to mind various rodent species.

She had rimmed spectacles perched on that nose, and he turned to her with a smile while his back remained firmly planted against the dugout trench. A supporting length of carved wood ran over his head and the flimsy structure rattled as the thunder of continuous blaster fire crossed above in coherent beams of violent red.

"I don't see you coming up with any bright ideas," he replied. The eyes of the others darted between the two as the urgent conversation wore on. Naruto didn't even realize that he spoke in a loud roar – it was the only way to make himself understood over the clamor of the simulated fight.

"It's better that we do well," he continued, "It's my guess that the other teams don't know what to do about the emplacement on the hill, and its eating at all of us," he said.

It was true. Though he could not view the whole battle as they scurried forward from one fortified trench to the next, bleeding their numbers on route, Naruto could tell from where he was that the whole battle centered on the hill. The atmospheric fighting jets that did battle above them centered on it, and the wavy lines of advancing at will the Shinobi were locked into the grid of control it created – alongside the defenders they were assaulting.

He noticed the woman's hard eyes on him. She wore glasses, strange for a Shinobi and her red eyes were a perfect match for the hair she wore in a long style. Like the rest of them she could not help but try to stare over his shoulder at his back – where his issued shield generator was conspicuously absent.

He could not carry the thing. He held more faith in his defensive disc, and there was no way he would be able to lug around the blade if he could not strap it conveniently to his back.

"Yeah but then the guns will be focused on us. There is no way we can make it across the killing fields intact," a few of the others nodded at her words. What she was saying only made sense.

"T-h-i-n-k will you? You're all Shinobi. Surely someone in this grouping has earth Jutsu?" Naruto sounded the enquiry. The easiest way to get there would be to dig out a route. Hell if there was someone with enough skill they could even play the part of Sapper squad and weaken the hill. It wouldn't take long for the weight of the Laser cannon emplacement to crash down then.

However the rest of the troop looked around all about and some of them shrugged. One sullenly asked, "And what about you? Got any?"

"No," he replied calmly. He knew he couldn't allow these reluctant soldiers to grate on his nerves – not if he wanted them to view him as their leader in the long-term.

"What about concealment Jutsu? Usually those are a dime a dozen amongst us missing types.

That brought a hard chuckle rising out of some of them. Too many of them had been forced to rely on such techniques while they cowered and hid from the hunter-nin their respective Hidden Villages had sent after them. Three individuals stepped forward and upon seeing each other fell into a private conversation. Naruto left them to decide which techniques would be appropriate.

He risked another glance out of the trench – easing up on his toes and pulling forward with one hand planted firmly into the sheltering soil. To the left of his vision, further down the line of engagement, the trench that was level with their position was unoccupied.

It was besides a river and the gunners on top of the hill had staked it out with their fire. A couple of corpses floated head down in the water, and there was charred human flesh strung out on the approach to the furrow.

There was a bit of scrambling below him. He looked and saw the rat faced woman coming up to meet him. It seemed as if she wasn't quite ready to cede the group to his sole authority.

"What do you have planned anyway?" she muttered as she gained the lip. Naruto found himself warming to her slightly. Perhaps she wasn't here to play games of dominance. Perhaps she wanted to do well – just as he did – and she did not know who to trust – just as he didn't.

"I want a line of smoke or fog covering our approach up to the hill base, but also up to that trench over there," he indicated the area he had been scrutinizing earlier. "It would have been good to have Earth Element on hand but we'll work with what we've got. We'll make a feint for the trench, they just cleared it, and hopefully they'll think we want to maintain control of the bridgehead across the river before they can pull more troops up.

"Do we?"

"Huh?"

"Do we want to maintain control of the bridgehead," the woman asked. Her face was pensive, so he knew she was simply trying to grasp the direction of his thoughts. "I wish the people over there were real," she whispered. "I can't use my abilities on these… fakes."

"What abilities?" he wanted to ask. Instead he settled for clearing his throat. Perhaps a diplomatic response was in order.

"Yea we do but I don't think it is as important as clearing the ridge. Once they see some of our troop feinting towards it then they'll send their own men and it will probably be a tough fight, but I think the only troops they have in reserve are on that hill – and I want to lure as many of them as I can away from it before we strike."

"Yea I can see that," she said simply. Naruto had been wondering about it on every little foray he took to peer out of the trench, and his eyes had kept going back to the empty gutter in front of the river. The enemy had not sent their troops forward to occupy it. Not even after they had gained temporary control of the air-space over it, and their guided Laser cannon had been able to punch holes into those that were supposed to defend it.

It probably meant that they did not have enough troops to defend it and the hill, and they were probably waiting for reinforcements from the rear. If he forced them to act before they were ready then the whole battle might shift on its head. The female missing-nin had seen this as well, and it was as good a plan as she had.

"Alright we'll do it this way," she said as she slid back into the dirt. "Let me just bring the others up to speed.

Naruto noticed that she did not say 'we'll do it your way' but rather used the word 'this,' but she hastened to obey orders he hadn't given - and for now, for this engagement, and in this moment, he was relatively sure that she was okay with being under him.

He slid back down. She was already organizing the other – barking out orders in the kind of tone he would have to learn to employ. The three who had gathered before crowded around him. They all squatted on their hunches and it was as if Naruto was about to draw out instructions for them all in the soft soil. In the method of those old sergeants and noncommissioned officers who had guided their forces into the slog of battlefields uncounted.

There was a sudden cry from one of sentries who rotated to gain viewing angles on the lip of the trench. The man's trembling finger pointed forward and his shield flared as he was hit with three bolts of blaster fire.

He was sent tumbling back, but he survived. Others took up the cry and flights of durasteel throwing stars and Kunai surged up just as the ambushing attackers threw themselves into earth above the trench.

The fire that came down only lasted through a couple of sporadic bursts but it forced the Shinobi to scatter – scampering about within the confined spaces of the dugout. A few of them were struck down. From this range the deadly rays hacked through the light personnel shields in the same way a razor sharp axe bites into wood. Naruto watched helplessly as one of the three Shinobi who would have spun his –vital- concealing web was burnt to oblivion.

The thrown weapons reached their mark around the same time. A few implements tore through the muzzles of the flashing rifles while others dented and pierced the faceless dark grey helmets the troops wore.

The holographic enemies they were facing were skilled. Their training, armor, and weapons would not have been out of place amongst the security forces of any one of the core worlds, and one out of the five man platoon still breathed.

Naruto went for the kill himself as the soldier pulled back his rifle and began his retreat back across the killing field before the hill emplacement. He risked himself in that moment as he surged up over the ridge in a mighty Force assisted leap.

His defensive blade freed itself from its restraining bandolier with a whispered snick, and his fighting disc was already in hand.

The great blade darted around with freedom as it absorbed and reflected the withering rays that converged on his position within those precious few seconds. His fighting disc was warm within his grip as he closed to clash with the commando.

The man let out a blast of fire as he retreated. He turned professionally to fire from the shoulder as he ran. Naruto's defensive disc was already fully engaged and his telekinesis had reached its limit keeping control of the weapon, in defiance of the heavy impacts of coherent light that was spitting down from the hilltop, so he could not defend himself easily.

He was forced into a sliding duck that painted the front of his dark brown clothing with even darker mud, but he escaped the blast and was soon sprinting on his feet. With his peripheral vision he absently observed the roiling smoke that was even now making its way out of his trench, and was being blown in the direction of the hill under the guidance of supernatural forces.

As he caught up to the man one gripping hand complete with bulging biceps reached out to drag the warrior to the ground. Even as the man struggled he kept ahold of him by his waist, and he shifted his head aside from the swipe that was aimed at him with the butt of the commando's battle rifle.

Naruto's eyes widened and his nostrils flared as his fighting disc came down. The connecting plates on the neck – between the bulky protection of the torso and the hardened metal helmet that was worn- were a weak spot.

He marveled at the power of the goggles that he constantly forgot were strapped to his eyes. The kill was as realistic as he would accept given the images, sounds, and smells that were already being produced in his mind. The blade tore through the throat and released a font of dark red arterial blood that sprayed out in the first panicked release of pressure, and then coolly gushed to slick his fingers and feed the soil underneath.

He blinked - brought back to the present by the harsh vibration in his mindscape that was caused by yet another blaster bolt meeting the rapidly spinning arms of his greater disc. By now the rapidly spreading smoke had expanded to cover his position, and the blaster fire raining down all around him cooled as the enemy conserved their ammunition.

If they were real troops they would have been wondering why their infrared attachments failed to penetrate the haze. He almost chuckled to himself then. The same issues that commanders off world designed new technologies to solve his people devised new techniques to nullify. Shinobi had encountered heat detecting capabilities in conflict amongst themselves long before they had ever had contact with the stars and anyone who thought that superior technology would give them a heavy advantage had another think coming.

_Why do I even care?_

The laughter that had been threatening to erupt from the depths of him dissipated immediately.

It was the one question he was trying to avoid – the question that could change everything.

Naruto was not yet ready to admit that the circumstances that had torn him away from his home had been contrived at the worst, and pure bad luck at the best. He was not yet ready to admit that perhaps the teachings of his Sith Master's had not sunk as deeply into his bones as he had first assumed, and he was not yet ready to admit that he was challenged by his return of a few months to _**his **_home and _**his **_people at a deep level that a thousand years living with the foreign Zeison Sha could never have penetrated.

His acute ears picked up the soft footfalls of his troops at they moved in behind him. The lad he had told to stick by his side had wisely stayed clear when Naruto had leaped out of the trench to facedown the straggling commando, but now he was here and Naruto could feel his sticky and fetid breath as the man panted at his side.

They were both slung down in a crouch and a stream of his warriors past them by as the Shinobi headed to occupy the beachhead trench, or continued on to reach the base of the hill.

"What kind of fighter are you?" Naruto asked.

"L-long range," the youth stammered even though he was addressing his junior in appearance and true age. "That was incredible!"

Naruto blessed him with a Cheshire smile. The kind he could not remember wearing since the time he had spent in Konoha before his training, and could not remember ever meaning even half of what it did now.

"No more questions about the lack of a P.S.G eh?" he stated simply.

**Six months later**

Naruto and his unit passed all the tests the rabid old Shinobi sergeant threw at them, and they passed them with flying colors.

Other teams weren't so lucky. They were decimated by training casualties as some of them were crippled in accidents, and the minds of others broke.

It was always a good thing when you spotted these - those soldiers who couldn't cope with the massive difference between now and a scant few years ago. Those soldiers who froze up when the blasters started firing, the mechs started treading, and the jets began to scream overhead were worthless when it came down to it.

Karin was beside him in the line. She was a sensor. He had discovered that fact about a month after their first training exercise together, and as far as his Corps was concerned she was his right hand.

They were shoulder to shoulder hidden deep within the square of missing-nin. He had come to know most of the people here. From the Shinobi who would serve as the units ground forces to the various pilots who would support them from the air and fight alongside them on the ground. Shit if they had not yet been assigned to a Ship then he would know the cooking staff and assorted orderlies who would take care of them on their journeys between star-systems.

He fidgeted a bit. The sergeant wouldn't stop going on and on. In the initial instant he had been uncouth and abusive towards his charges but now he was teary eyed. It was as if the man had to find a way to make them uncomfortable - even when he wasn't yelling at them.

Finally it was over and the sergeant wound up. His dismissal was curt, and there was a short period of aimless milling around as units reformed – escaping the ordered madness that was parade ground rest and splitting into units.

_Three battalions this graduation_

He mused as he walked. Occasionally he traded a nod with Shinobi or Pilots that served in his unit. The ninja nodded back with their dead eyes and there was something like hero-worship in the fevered gazes of his pilots. He was only their de-facto leader but he treated them all the same. Anyone who damned him for that could go to hell.

Karin was at his shoulder but she was quiet as usual. She was scanning the crowds just as he was, and he wondered what the old man at the hotel would have thought if the two of them were to walk in right now – dressed as they were in the combat fatigues, allied forehead protectors, and standardized weaponry of the armed forces. He wondered what anyone who wasn't a Shinobi thought about the Missing-nin who had taken up the amnesty. Kami knew that their Shinobi brethren themselves weren't so pleased to have.

Naruto shrugged and this sudden action caught Karin's hawk like attention. There was only so much he could do and he did not even know why he was considering the topic. He had to remember what he had come here to do. He couldn't forget his purpose.

"Something up?" Karin asked. Just as he did she bristled at the glares that came their way from the regular forces. There was a ban in place on the bearing of marked kerchiefs to signal ones troop of origin but everyone knew that it was only enforced where the Missing-nin units were concerned. It was the only method the Shinobi could use to mark them out, and they weren't about to give up the privilege.

"Just fantasizing… thinking about putting my foot up one of these asses and wondering if the room I have on rent is still being held for me, or maybe the owner's assumed I'm dead and he has already rented it out again. I don't know," he said.

"Ah… so you aren't thinking about the important things. No wonder your face is so slack," there wasn't any obvious humor in her voice. Karin was a budding master of the dead-pan.

"What do you mean? What's important that I've missed?"

"Oh nothing much - just the fact that the two of us have to go meet our new commanding officer, or didn't you get the memo?"

"No I didn't!" Naruto ran one roughened hand through his hair. It was starting to grow out again. "I don't have my datapad on me," he groaned. His discblades were in their accustomed places and his Lightsaber had not left its hiding place at the small of his back for even a breath of fresh air. It was becoming very accustomed to the scroll within which he carried it.

"Don't worry I've got mine," Karin said as she opened the small satchel she carried and removed the compact device. "we need to be bearing that way actually," she nodded towards the depot where unassigned Transport Ships were kept. "The new commander is waiting for us there. Something about picking out a ship,"

"How did they know to collar us two anyway?" Naruto asked. He was still put out. He had been hoping to be able to govern his unit from the shadows as was the Shinobi _**and **_Sith way but it seemed that his superiors had already eyeballed his dominant position within the group.

"These guys are also trained Shinobi remember? Probably with a darn sight more training than we have. I'm not surprised that they've already identified the cream that rose to the top," Karin smiled this time. Unlike him she did not mind being identified as a leadership figure.

"So what does this mean for us? Are we going to be under this guy's boot or what?" the high chain linked fence that guarded the depot was almost before their very faces. There were a couple of regular Shinobi patrolling outside and stationed within on flimsy observation platforms. Of course Missing-nin couldn't have been entrusted with such **important** work.

"I don't know," Karin started slowly, "every Missing unit has an old fashioned four man team assigned to it. That's all I could gather," she concluded.

"Let's see what we have to work with then," Naruto was now resigned to the situation. He could see the various transports which rested heavily within the compound. His only hope now was that they would not be assigned a decrepit wreck which wouldn't survive atmospheric entry. He had no faith in the vessels that were parked out without a hanger's protection, and there would be hell to pay if his unit – which had graduated above all simultaneously training regular and Missing units – was not granted one of the sleek vessels which lurked within the warehouses.

"This better be worth my time," he murmured.

* * *

><p>Sarutobi Asuma watched as the Missing-nin sauntered into the hanger. A tall blond youth made an appearance, and he was accompanied by a red haired girl who almost reached the boy's size. She wore glasses – odd for a Shinobi- but her steps had the same sort of confidence that plagued most of the Missing-nin who had accepted the amnesty - the same unjustified confidence that bothered all the other regulars.<p>

Unlike them however Asuma understood why the amnesty had been necessary. It wouldn't have done at all to be on some lonely and distant planet whilst the traitorous dogs they had left at their back rampaged through their cities slaughtering and raping.

He shook his head sadly – almost imperceptibly. Shikamaru caught the motion at once and seemed to understand. The young Shinobi seemed to understand everything although he was not yet even fifteen years old.

"Good morning and welcome!" he called out to them in a pleasant enough fashion despite his feelings. Word was that these two controlled the group of renegade Shinobi he and his team had been assigned to govern. Though he would speak to these two with Shikamaru by his side he had sent Ino and Choji to scout out the rest of the forces that would be under his command.

The great Ship was behind him, _**The Interloper, **_alongside her two cousins she had been one of the first vessels to set ion engines on Terra. She was one of the three that he and his brothers from Konoha had liberated from the hands of slavers and killers.

"Hey there," the boy said. Although he was young his eyes were sharp. They were as sharp as the oversized shuriken he had strapped on.

Shikamaru seemed to start for a second. His student's eyes widened and his fist gripped down on the table for only an instant, but Asuma noticed. He noticed it happen as the boy tagged a colloquialism to the end of his sentence. It wasn't a common one, but such things were widespread and in essence meant nothing. They weren't even worth noticing. Datte something?

The blonde boy seemed to become alert. His eyes narrowed at Shikamaru, but evidently it was nothing for neither of them said anything.

"This will be our ship," Asuma said unnecessarily before he cleared his throat. It was as if the tension he had sensed a moment ago had vanished without a trace. The male and female traitors were looking at him calmly whilst his number one student had a bored look on his face. The boy played idly with one of the Shoji pieces they had been using earlier while they waited.

"And you two will be my N.C.O's," there were looks of confusion on their faces, "that's Non-commissioned Officers. I will be relying on the two of you to be the bridge between me and my officers," he gestured at the young boy and one of Karin's eyebrows rose in disbelief, "and the troops… I trust that will work out well for the both of you?"

"Yes sir. Very good," the blonde's response was curt. It only took a small nudge before the girl followed his lead.

"Yes sir," she repeated.

"Good… very good…" he trailed off. He held a datapad in his left arm uncomfortably. Even after four years he was still a bit awkward when it came to manipulating technology and like most Shinobi he lacked an implant. "… Karin and Nathaniel Uzumate," Shikamaru interrupted him again dropping the shogi piece he had in his hand. He and the blond locked eyes again and favored each other with smiles. The one his student wore was hesitant and nervous whilst the grin on Nathaniel's face curdled the blood.

"Dismissed," Asuma concluded with some discomfort.

* * *

><p><strong>AN **

**(A reply and dedication to Hochmeister) **

"Firstly this is a dedication to Hochmeister to thank him for his monster review. I think when you write a lot of words in a grammatically correct manner and don't get much response you start to wonder if you are any good at what you are doing, so this review came at the right time as it reminded me that my work can touch people. Even those who don't usually like to read the sort of stuff I write about.

"Now – in response to the great questions posed in that review:

"Let us begin with Hoch's concerns over the direction my development of Naruto has taken. In retrospect I can see how I have failed to develop Naruto emotionally. I dislike fics where our hero is given powers out of the blue so I spent a lot of time on the Sha Kalan act, but as Hoch says I probably failed to a certain extent when it came to character building, and not just the kind of building I did – which was to give him a baseline of abilities – All I can do about this point is continue to write and hope that the character grows into his emotions. I am not a professional – yet – and so I will definitely make mistakes.

"Building on this are other concerns which I guess you could say center on the role visions play in this work. To this all I can say is that I will try to make them less… _Deus Ex Machina_. But it would be wise to remember that visions play a huge part in all of the Star Wars movies and in many of the novels. I mean how convenient was it that Yoda or Luke (I can't remember which) had a vision which called him from his urgent training to save a damsel in distress?

"Therefore I will continue to use visions although in the future I will try to be tighter with my application, so as to avoid similar (justified) complaints.

"Something else I thought it important to address was Hoch's concerns of the size of the plot. In this I would ask you to trust me. One of the greatest books I have ever read was Malazan book of the Fallen, and I didn't know what the fuck was going on the first time I picked it up.

"Fifty thousand words sound like a lot to you Hoch? By the time I am done this work may approach half a million… we have only scratched the surface.

"Till next time,"

**- Darklighter **


	12. Chapter 12: The Year 755 ABY

**SHGS - Chapter Twelve: The Year 755 ABY**

**Disclaimer: I do not own, or profit, from Naruto, Star Wars, and all associated media. **

"_Thoughts"_

"Speech"

"_**Abnormal sentient thoughts"**_

"**Abnormal sentient speech"**

* * *

><p><strong>AN **

"Enjoy,"

**- Darklighter**

* * *

><p>Naruto could not remember ever being as terrified as he now was. He could barely suppress the shaking that was dying to break out all over him.<p>

It was that in between time between night and day. Often it can be experienced early in the morning or for a brief instant at twilight.

The neat rows of writing on the datapad glistened primly whilst the square boxes that escorted them gazed at him with expectation.

He knew what they wanted from him. All he had to do was classify the techniques many of his soldiers used so that Asuma and _Shikamaru _could gain a squad level understanding of the resources available to them, but he was hesitant.

Karin besides him had already dived into her own pad. Asuma wasn't around but Shikamaru was in the annex common room besides them. Some of the unit had been in this part of the barrack earlier on taking rec time, but Naruto had cleared them out of the isolated space to welcome his superior.

He knuckled down to it.

'_Do any members of the Squad utilize Earth Element or Earth type Jutsu?'_

"_No,"_ it seemed simple enough now that he looked at it properly. He tapped the box and the next question automatically scrolled up into optimal reading space.

He went through the next few questions quickly.

_All other Elements, yes. Rank in order? Alright… Good. Next question is…_

This continued for a while. The process was tedious not only because the questions grew increasingly complex, but also because Naruto had a very intimate knowledge of the abilities of his battalion's Shinobi. However he did not have the 'language' to transmit this knowledge efficiently. He did not have the foundational training that was presumed of him.

You see at this level it wasn't just the introductory training of the academy. At this level he was expected to be able to express himself – at the very least – with the grammar and vocabulary of a Chuunin, and his attempts to do so was abysmal.

Finally it was over. He was scrolled to the personal questionnaire. It was a single question.

'_Why are you hiding Uzumaki Naruto?'_

His heart stopped. His training took ahold and his mind grasped his Lightsaber. His mental thumb itched over the trigger, and he was about to rip the weapon out of its containing shell.

'_None of your fucking business,'_ he typed.

A million emotions warred within as his eyes tightened. His head seemed to come up slowly, oh so slowly. Karin's rapidly clicking fingers were in the distant background as she completed her own personal questions. A beeping noise sounded on Shikamaru just as Naruto locked eyes with him.

Naruto felt as if everything zoomed into an odd sort of tunnel vision as his hungry astonishment settled on the pulse at the Chuunin's neck.

The fear was writ plain on Shikamaru, even though Karin and her awesome abilities as a sensor was so engrossed in giving a detailed account of her every good point that she could not sense the change in the pitch, but still he managed a hesitant smile.

The Chuunin consulted the beeping datapad as Naruto's legs began to coil in under him. Although one hand still held the datapad the other was about to clamp down on the desk before him and send him vaulting over to assault his superior, but his own device beeped once when Shikamaru began to type and he reluctantly consulted it.

"_I haven't told Asuma, and afterwards you can destroy both of our data pads. I'm only going to use the data from Karin anyway," _Shikamaru was frantic.

Naruto settled down as it became obvious that the lieutenant was just as unsettled by this turn as he was - in fact the pineapple haired one was terrified. Slowly he eased up his mental grip on his Lightsaber. Faced with a desperate situation he had been ready to rely on the ways of the Sith once more.

_Once more? No. Always._

He settled back down. Shikamaru continued to type in the time it took him to do this.

"_I can't expect you to know the things she does, but you know other things don't you? Things no one has yet had time to learn on this world except for the most experienced battalions - the first year guys._

"_Our Commander – Asuma – was one of those guys. We've been watching the holos of your battalion's performances over training. Asuma pointed it out from the very first exercise when your unit snuck its Mechs up behind the river using a column of Water Element Mist for cover. He made me a bet that one of the two of you – either you or Karin – was in that unit, and he was right. The both of you were. Asuma thinks it's because you guys are intuitive and fantastic but I -"_

"_You think we're what? No good? It would be typical. We're only missing-nin after all," _Although Naruto was shocked by the depth of Shikamaru's thinking he did not allow this to show in his expression as his fingers depressed his pad.

"_No I think it's because of __**you.**__ You were taken away from us, but you came back with knowledge didn't you?_

"_I __**recognized **__you from all those years ago. Even though there's no way you look like a fourteen year old I know it's you Naruto, and if I only had suspicions before your reactions confirm it for me,"_ the young Chuunin's posture and expression became stony despite the stench of his fear in the Force. Karin had almost finished with her own datapad. Belatedly Naruto realized that she would not allow him to strike down Shikamaru without just cause – even though they were friends. If he had acted on his initial impulse then he would have had to slay her as well.

"_We played together a few times Shikamaru," _Naruto almost sighed. _"I'm here for my own reasons. Don't make things difficult for me."_

"_But you don't have to be here!" _Shikamaru persisted_, "I know – everyone knows - that you were never logged as a Missing-nin. We sent out search teams for you, and the Hokage –"_

"_I __**want **__to be in this battalion Shikamaru. I don't know if you really didn't say anything to Asuma, but for now I'm going to trust you. I don't want to trust you but if I kill you. Well if I kill you then they will say that all Missing-nin are the same, and - believe it or not - these soldiers have been greater friends to me than anyone in Konoha ever was."_

There was a lull in the electronic conversation as Shikamaru pondered all the words Naruto had written.

Finally the Chuunin nodded. He was tall for his age and his soft Bantha hide boots barely made a sound as he edged off his high backed chair. Funnily enough it was this insignificant sound that awakened Karin just as she completed her questionnaire. Shikamaru smoothly took it from her and placed it in the same hand within which he held his. He then placed the stack on the table before Naruto.

"Naruto take these to Asuma will you?" he nodded slightly and if there was still fear in his eyes then there was now comprehension in his smile.

"Alright, it's not a problem Lieutenant," there was no irony in Naruto voice as he addressed his superior although they both knew that only one datapad would end up in their commander's possession.

* * *

><p><strong>Jedi Enclave, Corellia<strong>

**755 ABY, Late Spring**

Nothing she had ever done in this life was as difficult as what she was trying to learn now. Hinata had never faced so much adversity and doubt, but she had struggled through – attaining ever greater levels of mastery over the abilities she was trying to direct. She had been tempered over the years by her attempts and now at seventeen years of age she had progressed at a rate that astonished her Master - her Master Pav Qeral.

She still did not understand the reasons behind the deception. The order had led her to believe that she was going to study under a Corellian Master. They had led her to believe that she was to study more of the Lightsaber, and although she knew that her Master came from one of the worlds in the system – from Talus to be exact – she had not thought that she would study under Pav's guidance, or that the arts she would struggle to absorb would be spiritual in nature.

She eased into her clothes. Every day it was the same sequence, for how could she hope to achieve a level of meditation so deep and pure that she could guide troops in battle if she could not remain in total command over her morning rituals?

The cleansing had come before and she would not sully her insides with food before the day's training. She was allowed some water and this she sipped gingerly as she stood in her austere stone chamber. The cold seeped up from under the cool flagstones, and the bare walls resembled the parched environs of a drained out marsh.

The water was much needed and gave her some relief. She could not bother to count how long it had been since she had seen Sakura, Sasuke, or even Kakashi who had only dropped in to visit the temple on rare and brief occasions after that initial period of acclimatization on Coruscant.

Less so those others she had left behind in Konoha – although the frantic reports over the General Nets over the past few years had pierced her contemplative isolation and often brought thoughts of her home planet to the fore.

Mistress Pav was waiting for her in the aerie. It seemed as if her whole life since leaving Konohagakure no sato had been spent in the clouds.

* * *

><p><strong>Yugakure<strong>

**June 17****th ****755 ABY (Terran Calendar)**

A wise commander once said that if you continued to map the Unknown Regions then you would have to call the area something else. That man went by the name of Wedge Antilles, and he did not know how right he would eventually prove to be.

Although travel between the area and the rest of the decaying galaxy remained difficult 'The Chiss Conglomerate' dominated the systems past the hyperspace disturbances, and it was their trade vessels that kept the galaxy at large aware of life beyond the veil.

This conglomerate was the result of centuries of interaction between the Chiss and the various slaver species in the unknown regions such as the Ebruchi and the Vagaari. Under the umbrella of Chiss protection lesser races were able to flourish somewhat, but only a scant few years since Terra's emergence the landscape was beginning to change at a rate that was utterly anathema to the normal and slow workings of historically consequent galactic events.

Until now the Chiss Ascendancy had found itself the only force for order in a region a swirl with madness, and often their ordered barbarity had matched the savagery of the pirate species they did sworn battle against.

In the modern period new dense clusters of habitable worlds had been mapped out, and many new intelligent species introduced to Galactic society. The lost human tribe that the people of Terra surely sprung from were but one of these, and further evidence that humans must have spread beyond the hyperspace disturbances to colonize the Unknown Regions - just like the Chiss themselves.

For the Chiss Ambassador there was a certain brotherhood to be found in their common ancestry when faced with multitudes of hostile alien physiognomies, and the mercenaries of Terra had served those missions his embassy had granted them diligently and executed objectives with ruthless efficiency.

If the people of Terra had not been conveniently present then the tall humanoid Vagaari and the crouching mouth-tentacled and green Ebruchi would not have consumed all, but they would not be cowering in terror as they were presently.

As he walked through the buzzing barracks quarters, where his face was now a welcome sight, the Chiss ambassador reflected on the strong bonds he was forging for his House with this planet.

As a Syndic of his House his Colonial Phalanx was ensconced nearby. Not in system and after their first fledgling steps into the Galaxy the people of Terra had discovered his flotilla, but it still remained a less than idle threat in their minds.

Yugakure had really grown. He remembered when his embassy had been one of the city's prominent structures, but now it was almost tucked away – although the government had been kind enough to keep the environs secluded.

He had grown attached to the residential area although the next House and its ambassador may want to move. Appearances were still important when dealing with nascent species.

His escort was doing a good job of taking them through the shanty town barracks but it was hard going. The place was ordered. He granted them that as he gazed out of the Executive Speeder's dimmed viewing ports, but it was still a chaos as the various hangers-on of the vast Shinobi lived their lives.

Despite its best efforts it was impossible for the government to drag their people away from their roots, and the center of Yugakure was a beehive of clandestine activity as the natives formed a 'super hidden village' complete with sects and clans – that was surrounded by vast manufacturing and agricultural works.

Overhead the skies were abuzz with activity. They were alive with the roar of military vehicles exiting and entering Terra's atmosphere. Mostly military vehicles because Terra was now a firm part of the Unknown's consciousness, and was quickly becoming famed beyond the Region's borders where its Shinobi had begun to take contracts.

Two years ago the ruling Council had designated the Twin Cities, as they were calling the former Hidden Villages in the Leaf and Cloud as the planets commercial ports to ease the strain on the first installation at Yugakure. A year later fledgling ports had sprung up and now any merchants who wanted to do business with the planet's businesspeople on home turf where prices were favorable, and not in space where they were exorbitant flocked to one of the two.

Port Yugakure had continued to grow. It had become a hive of military activity and there was nowhere else for him to be as representative of his people. This close to the council chambers there was a constant dull thud in the background which penetrated the proofing of his vehicle. The Council had flat out refused his tentative suggestions to change the location of their deliberations. The noise was caused by the Mechs that stalked their designated highways on route to the launching pads. Cowled Shinobi clustered in the transports which accompanied the mechs on antigrav tracks.

The Chiss Ambassador would miss this world, but he did not have much hope that his replacement would be able to accomplish as much as he. Not if he was able to convince the Council to accept his latest treaty.

He had hope in the treaty. Although the balance of power had changed in the region – two of the Kage now possessed fleets that could rival his own for firepower if not experience – it had not changed in the wider scheme of things. It was better that he who they knew tried to extract this latest concession from them as opposed to some neophyte who would not know his head from his ass when it came to the cloak and dagger politics of the Shinobi.

He managed a smile despite the thumping of the Mechs. The vehicles were so old-fashioned, but supported by the esoteric powers of the Terran grunts they had been given a brilliant make-over.

* * *

><p><strong>Barracks of the 13<strong>**th**** Missing Battalion**

"Thirty-two Mechs and pilots, nineteen pilots without Mechs, three hundred and Forty one healthy Shinobi, fifty four injured Shinobi, and a full complement of Fang pilots after the recent redeployment," Shikamaru finished rattling off the figures for the benefit of the officers and non-commissioned in the room. Asuma was in a gloomy mood, but was identifiable by the curls of smoke that spread out from him to poison their lungs.

"We started with a whole lot more than that," Naruto said grimly. Of course usually the battalion's officers had their attention riveted on him. That was if Asuma wasn't speaking, but presently his mentor was in a foul mood.

"Yeah we did," Shikamaru closed his eyes and recited the figures from memory. "Five hundred Mechs and pilots, Ten thousand Shinobi, and the combined second exploration fleet left for Nar Shadaa under Danzo and **A's **command," to be precise he concluded.

Everyone could tell he was angry. Even Choji who was constantly caught between eating and obsessing over whether Haku was a guy or girl, and what the masked NCO's true relationship was to his mentor Zabuza – also an NCO in the battalion.

"I didn't realize that many," to his credit Naruto appeared chagrined. It was true that it was his hair brained scheme which had one the day for their particular battalion. They had won through even when Shikamaru's ordered processing of events had failed them.

He scratched at his beard as he stared at the 'Lightsaber' proudly displayed on his violent friend's thigh. It sat there rebelliously next two the huge blade strapped on the blonds back, and the smaller disc that dangled under his opposite armpit. The harness was dyed the same color as their dull and slim combat fatigues.

"We got off lucky," Zabuza ground out. Next to the blond Shinobi he stood out the most with his archaic weapon. The gigantic broadsword spanned the length of the bandaged man's back. Shikamaru and Asuma had made the man's acquaintance after Naruto had reflected on the fact that they reviewed the tape of his first holographic engagement. Zabuza and Haku had been the Missing-nin in his battalion that conjured the concealing the mist that had led them to victory.

For the moment Haku did not speak, but usually he held the same opinion as his Master. He did fidget slightly at the words though. He disliked death as much as any of them – any of them except Naruto. The only thing Naruto did when his friends died was get angry, and no matter how much he had seemed to love you in life when you were gone he moved on, but you could be sure that if he could he would murder your killers.

"To the higher ups it's just more Missing-nin dead," Karin was blunt as usual. She and Ino were sat at ease besides each other. The two sensory Kunoichi had formed a tight friendship – although their disagreements could be brutal, but in this they were not on the same side. Ino seemed to sidle away from her and eye her warily. The old divides between Missing-nin and the regular Shinobi were yet to fade, and in a way Shikamaru and his team had been set to keep watch over this lot.

"Let's not go down that route," even Asuma who was lax with his Missing-nin when contrasted with other commanders of similar forces wouldn't tolerate this line of conversation.

Shikamaru could not help but take note of his new trench knives as his mentor stood up. Asuma had commissioned these knives to be made from the same chakra absorbent material that the originals had been composed of, but in addition discreet blaster nozzles peered out of the hilts. When he held the grip a certain way they could emit a shotgun spray of laser bursts.

The battalion commander rounded his desk. He and his Lieutenants carried refined and powerful shields at the small of their backs unlike their Missing-nin who still carried bulky backpacks. (Except of course for Naruto and Zabuza for neither would give up the weapons on their backs and neither of whom was quite sane by anyone's definition of the word.)

"We're headed straight back out and we're gonna have to take our rec time in transit. Command just patched a message through to me. The Chiss need us on a Class S concerning the Vagaari. Their encroaching into territory that has been set aside for our use – word is that they are moving settlers in, and that world was scheduled for our colonization within the next three years.

"A lot of us Commanders told Danzo and **A **that we had to stick to priorities and they didn't listen. Nar Shadaa could have waited and I don't know what the fall-out is gonna be, but we've got to keep the battalion on its feet no matter what, and that means lots of successful missions so we get rec time and recruitment privileges. Officers dismissed."

* * *

><p><strong>AN**

"**I've been ignoring my girlfriend because of you people. R- E –V – I – E – W, and if I am happy with how many I get the next chapter will be ultra-combat centric!"**

**Darklighter**


	13. Chapter 13: Sora no Kuni

**SHGS - Chapter Thirteen: Sora no Kuni**

**Disclaimer: I do not own, or profit, from Naruto, Star Wars, and all associated media. **

"_Thoughts"_

"Speech"

"_**Abnormal sentient thoughts"**_

"**Abnormal sentient speech"**

**A/N **

"… I need to get better at keeping threats,"

**- Darklighter**

* * *

><p><strong>Yugakure Spaceport<strong>

Shikamaru was sunk under alongside the rest of battalion. It had taken an age to transport the whole group unto their vehicle. Not only due to the logistics of it, which he had to be aware of seeing as it was the Lieutenant's duty to overlook deployments, but also because the troops were tired. They were all damned tired. The conflict on Nar Shadaa had seen to that.

Their metal cage wrenched through the air as it took off. From here on out they would remain within the feverish embrace of the liquid that kept them frozen between life and death.

They would remain within its embrace for the duration of the short skip to the point of engagement – the Umaren'k system.

Little had been known about this planet until recently due to the unique nature of travel within the confines of the rim. The lush jungle world's only drawback was the ferocity of its wildlife, but for the Shinobi this was a blessing in disguise – the training of that planet's future generations would be just as exacting as that of their forefathers who were to colonize it.

The planet was called Umaren'k like its predecessor, but the Council had decided to rename it. In truth the colonization efforts had taken a long time to gain headwind because of this delicate political situation.

As was usual the civilian governments quickly got wind of the situation. Their representatives took it upon themselves to squabble the issue out and the name they chose was typically cringe-worthy. The planet would be called Sora no Kuni (The Land of the Sky) in honor of the Shinobi who had born that name and been defeated by the five great Villages, but also to commemorate Terra's first tentative forays into the stars.

Shikamaru thought it was a load of bullshit. Firstly they still had to turn away the Vagaari incursion. What was the point of naming a planet they were not even sure to control? Then there was the fact that the dispensation was by no means equal. There were no settlers from the Wind country or any of the smaller nations that had followed their lead.

The Water country had fifteen percent of the dispensation on account of the strength of their interstellar trade agreements - especially those dealing in droids. The Fire weighed in at thirty-eight percent whilst the Cloud Shinobi had acquired a whopping forty-two percent for their nation.

Earth had been hit the hardest and their populous lands only yielded five percent. Perhaps there is some truth in the words of those who say that a people tend to mirror their Leaders, for in the not too distant past the Earth home had hailed Ōnoki and his Council as astute when those wise ones had urged a caution response to the discovery of life outside Terra.

Shikamaru would have sighed if he had not been constrained so by the protective liquid. These old school vessels were hardened to endure deep-space for they were designed to take colonists on extremely long distance flights at low speed and for a low cost.

The Shinobi had purchased the vessels and improved their hyperdrive cores with expensive models gifted – and purchased – from the Chiss. If there was one area of science where the Shinobi were rapidly becoming renowned for craftsmanship it was in the area of shielding, and the refurbished ships could take quite a pounding. Enough of one to allow them to deliver their deadly payloads whilst the buzzing cloud of Terra's medium to small sized star fighters offered what protection they could.

Shikamaru's people were a pragmatic lot, and they focused their research and acquisition of new techs in those areas that would bring the most material success on the battlefield. A homebrew mech model to replace the army surplus units that they had purchased from the Chiss had been in development for over four years, and the first land combat vehicles would soon begin to roll of the production lines of the earth bound factories that had sprung up in the Land of Fire.

Most Shinobi were still nervous where space combat was concerned. They were utterly dependent on their pilots – dissatisfied civilians almost to a man – to deliver them to any engagement. If there was more respect between these pilots and the Shinobi they served now than there had been in the beginning then the pilots also now walked with a definite swagger. These had been men and women who had been dying to excel at war, and now they finally had their chance.

Success in any space engagement depended on the carrier ship which brought the swarm of eager pilots – the Fangs lacked hyper-drives – to the fight. Apparently creating an A.I powerful enough to govern such a large construct was dangerous and had well documented consequences on the few occasions when it had been attempted.

There was no software law or neurotic stimulant powerful enough to govern such a creature, so the carrier was controlled by a cluster of pilots. They did battle against the five great minds that governed the workings of the ship, dubbed, _The First Hokage, _for it was the first carrier that had been purchased by the Leaf.

_The First Hokage _was accompanied by three destroyers owned by the Cloud. There was an unspoken of division of labor even in this. The people of the Leaf were invested in carriers and Fangs whilst the pilots of the Cloud worked in teams to control the medium sized Capital ships needed to protect Terra's nascent flotillas - although of course there was some crossover.

They would be accompanied by the new Chiss ambassador's Colonial Phalanx. The man's house had a vested interest in their success, and without his ships they would have been no chance that the Terran force would be able to gain space superiority over the Vagaari.

Shikamaru itched to be able to at least turn his head. He was bored to shit. He was forced to stare straight out of the Transparisteel egg which contained him and he had no choice but to look out at the dim glowing nest clusters that housed the rest of the troop.

They would die without the capsules for there was no tangible atmosphere in the hold and Shinobi detested heavy body armour and life support. They had been forced to change the balance of the yellow liquid that sustained the soldiers during hyperspace journeys. Going into a deep hibernation was not good for the body and it was preferable that their minds be forced to stay partially active whilst their bodies were nourished and refreshed.

_We all have to suffer like this, even Commander Asuma, all of us except Karin and Naruto - Karin, Naruto, their traitors, and the Aventis._

* * *

><p><strong>Aboard The Aventis<strong>

They hyperspace journey was over. They had arrived at their destination after the long sojourn within the speedy confines of the tunnel that their own scientists were yet to comprehend, and they had arrived in the system of Umaren'k.

There partially shadowed by its moon was Sora no Kuni - the planet that had been designated to his people by the Chiss. Of course a people's march to the stars could not be simple or without consequence. The Vagaari vessels were already beginning to transition into defensive patterns. The rotund shapes varied in size but the principals behind their construction were the same. They were designed to cover a wide lens area with their targeting computers, but they had an obvious weak-spot which was the thrust emitter that fixed the rest of the vessels in place.

Naruto knew that the Vagaari excelled in ground warfare – unlike the Ebruchi whose squat forms and limited array of Force sensitive talents were not suited to such combat.

Therefore they did not have many true pilots – they relied a lot on A.I's, but they were limited in that if the creatures were too powerful what pilots they did have would be quickly overwhelmed. Already they had deployed their large population transports. A similar motley of ships hung behind the Terran and Chiss armadas. The Shinobi's civilian seeding transports were bulky. Many of them were refurbished slaves ships similar to the ones that had invaded Terra. Aventis' sleek form contrasted sharply with the desperate crew that shadowed her.

The Fighter Carrier had begun to release the Fangs it clutched in its spindly arms into the Vacuum of Space whilst one of the Destroyers escorting her remained by her side. The other two slowly gained thrust, but soon they were booming through the volume towards his position. The weird physics of space meant that he perceived on approaching as if on an ascent whilst the other descended, but all three converged on the mass of spheres that was protecting the disembarking Vagaari.

The Chiss fleet moved sleekly but it did not seem eager to join the battle. Although they had taken a side the protocols of galactic events meant that their role had to be limited, and if the Vagaari pilots were smart they would only have to deal with the Terran vehicles.

Three pairs of War-Yachts peeled off from the main body and formed an escorting guard in front of the approaching Terran civilians. Two obscured forms were perceived in the far reaches of the star system by the acute sensors that were embedded in the Chiss Flagship. One boasted of an obscene sensory array. This smaller ship would record all that transpired on the behest of the Media Corporations whilst the other's deadly presence was only there to inspire doubt should the pair be discovered and some Commander consider attack.

Naruto had not yet had time to modify The Aventis's internals so that she could more easily contain his troop. This wasn't' due to any slack on his part, but because he had only revealed her existence in his hour of dying need – just before the calamitous raid on Nar Shadaa. As it was he was engrossed in the budding array of active star ships, and could not ponder what the rest of his troop was doing.

If he had not deserted the troop only to return aboard his ship and turn the joined battle with Lightsaber in hand then only Kami knew what would have happened to Asuma's Battalion, and his personal unit – _the Traitor's – _probably wouldn't have made it out of that cesspit with enough coherence to survive the next round of redeployments and reformations. His Commander's Battalion had been in the thick of the fighting, for their reputation as a crack force was not unjustified. As far as he was concerned they deserved what comforts his fighting vessel could because now they were verifiably an elite unit. Their lead NCO commanded the single deadliest fighting vessel in the whole fleet.

Had it not been for politics Naruto would already be the first Missing soldier to make Lieutenant, and Asuma was already talking about writing up a request for better shield gens for his personal unit.

The hardened and tall blond knew the men and women deserved the protection. They were always to be found at the fore no matter the terrain or world, and yet they were efficient. Many enemy troops could perish trying to take the lives of just a few _Traitors_.

Despite the opinions of all the other Shinobi Naruto liked the name Sora no Kuni.

He didn't know much about the Nin who the name was derived from, and he didn't care much about the politics – the phrase was nicely neutral- but he enjoyed the simple symbolism. Indeed it was a land in the skies because his people would become firmly entrenched in the galaxy once they had colonized more living space.

Perhaps he embraced this single minded nationalism to replace what felt lost. However although it wouldn't be true to say that Naruto had lost the way of the Sith code it would be fair to say that he had attained a certain bittersweet mastery over it, for an alternate interpretation to some of its simple words had wrung the same effect on him as the words of the Jedi code have been known to do on followers of that sect - the kind of interpretation that could lead a stalwart like the long forgotten Kyp Durron to implode a star.

Naruto was rapidly becoming a creature of the grey – much closer to the people who he had birthed him than to the dark, but much further from the light than any Jedi would have found tasteful. He was rapidly becoming a Shinobi – in morals if not in abilities, for him there was no betrayal in this return to his roots. He had found his home amongst _the Traitors._

Thoughts of his crew brought to mind thoughts of his ship, and he was dragged away from his contemplation of the maneuvering formations. He worried that the crew were taking unwarranted liberties with her. Plugged in as he was to her interface he heard the low keen of her distress in the background as they hurtled through the cosmos.

She had been pleased to emerge from her slumber after all those years and welcome him back into her being, but she had gotten more than she bargained for after they arrived on Nar Shadaa and rescued _the traitors_ – including their commanding officer what was left of his unit- off the ground. She had been truly cramped during that flight, but although there was now more space the rambunctious _Traitors _were beginning to make her their own.

Naruto had made it known after their storming return that he was not going to hand over his private property, and Asuma had been a somber pillar of smoke. His chain smoking form would have handed in his resignation there and then if his intrepid NCO had not had his way.

Danzo had been so flush with rage and embarrassment following the failure of a plan that was of his, and his team of strategist's, devising, and he had ceded ground in this to the upstart NCO who had turned a nightmare that could have resulted in his assassination into a global 'hero' story.

Naruto of course had not fully abandoned the ways of the Sith. He had simply learned to look at its precepts dispassionately. Following the strictest of definitions they were just another chain after all. In this however he knew what to do and he had allowed the media to build him up with the popular masses whilst his close knit crew made sure that he did not lose too much face with the general soldiery.

The story had been too good to pass up. 'Local boy was the first off of his planet. He was abducted to the stars where he learned strange arts, and now he has returned to aid his world in its goals.' The media had lapped it up, and a few scattered reports had even made it to the General Nets.

To cut a long story short Uzumaki Naruto was becoming famous, and he was doing it being known as himself, and not as Nathaniel Uzumate. He had no fear of the bounty hunters from his past who had no doubt noted his new fame. When and if they came he would have a military unit of five Mechs, and forty-five Shinobi at his disposal.

Of course Osvaldus had not been pleased, and ominously he had not heard from Traya or from Deimus despite the fact that by now they must know where he was. He had heard something rather interesting though. He had heard that the Jedi Order was considering sending an embassy into the Unknown Regions.

It was practically unheard of for the Order to make such a gesture. Especially towards a nascent world, but the news had been hot on the tongue of many merchants. Enough so that Terra's native spy network had thought the information worth uploading to the anonymous gossip channels which you had to been an officer to access – Ino had told him about it.

Although the news was interesting he didn't have much time to concern himself with it, for Naruto was fully focused on the colonization of Sora no Sato.

He had no problems with Terra moving its timescale forward - especially not if the Vagaari had already been spotted in the system. However after what had happened on Nar Shadaa Asuma's battalion was not in fighting trim.

The men were still jaded from the death they had dealt and witnessed, and friends had been lost. He himself had been taken aback at the ferocity with which the Hutts' slaves and mercenaries defended their masters. They must have had been possessed of a very instinct and deep seated fear, and the Shinobi had tasted defeat. They had been fed an almost overwhelming defeat.

Terrestrial media spun it as well as they could but the rest of the galaxy, including the Unknown Region, relied on the General Nets – and the Hutts had their fingers in many of the great Media Corporations. Prices were already beginning to rise on Terra and a defeat at the hands of the Vagaari was not tolerable.

It was for these reasons that he could make out the vector lines of the Chiss Phalanx protecting their civilians. Their pilots were more skilled than those who controlled the vehicles the Aventis had painted brilliant gold. The bright green lines of the Chiss flight paths were a reassuring presence as he perceived the fleet through the diffuse senses of his baby.

Word had it that Osvaldus had not been best pleased with the Chiss decision to send a Phalanx in support. Unlike most of the Shinobi Uzumaki NCO realized Osvaldus was a cancer. The male was a Sith just as Naruto still could be when he willed it, and the Zabrak was **not **a native.

He couldn't uncover him yet though. To do so would cast doubt on the NCO himself as he had recently been revealed to all in the Battalion as Sith trained, and he was sure it was similar reasoning in mind that had stayed Osvaldus from denouncing him when Naruto had justified his right to retain control over the Aventis before all the council.

He sighed. The battle was about to be joined. The purposeful movements of the various fighting forces as they ate up the distance betwixt them devolved into a headlong race through the kilometers.

Although the lean of his control room was comfortable he could not bear leave **Karin** and the rest of his monsters alone with his ship for a moment longer than was necessary.

* * *

><p><strong>Sora no Kuni (Inner Atmosphere)<strong>

The modified transport carrier was only just breaking through. She was named The Trawler, and her flattened belly began to heat and boil to dull red as she blasted through Sora no Sato's atmosphere.

This obese vessel was Naruto's primary concern, for she contained Asuma and his entire battalion.

The civilians had broken through unscathed as he had predicted. The Vagaari overlords did not want to give the Chiss a reason to employ their weapons, and the galaxy at large believed that the colonization of a virgin world was not a matter that could often go uncontested.

The Shinobi approach had caused some casualties. The Chiss herded most of the transport vessels into the dense foliage that covered the eastern continent – well away for the primary Vagaari settlement which seemed to be forming on the Northern most of the three large landmasses that made up the world.

The vegetation here was not as lush, but instead of grass the planet's vegetation had evolved a rolling carpet of vines - complete with sparse thorny patches. They would be in the open as they did battle with the Vagaari, for the Shinobi pilots had managed to punch through the screen of fighters they had put in place over their settlement, and transports were beginning to dislodge troops within the comforting range of the mighty river that governed this landmass.

The fighting on the way through had been brutal but he hoped that it would be worth it. While their people began to lay their first marks on the planet the Shinobi warriors would try their best to eliminate the already seeded Vagaari settlers. Although some in the galaxy might frown at Terran aggression the Vagaari had done themselves no favors over the centuries with their unbridled lust for piracy, and victory here would mean that the fallout from the debacle on Nar Shadaa would fade to memory.

Although he had maintained a constant vigil over the perimeter of his Commander's new vessel he had at times darted off to obliterate the spherical drones of the Vagaari. These clashes pained him for the army Fangs that were burned from the skies in those moments housed valuable pilots in their slender chassis, whilst the Vagaari vehicles and their cheap A.I's were expendable.

One of the Cloud destroyers had made a great sacrifice before they had pierced Sora's atmosphere. The vessel had gamely gone toe to toe with its opposite member amongst the Vagaari which must have house a full third of what pilots they had, for the army Fang's had found it easy going against the massed dumb drones that impeded them.

There had been other losses although that destroyer had limped away from the fight – disabled but not finished. The fangs were born down through sheer numbers, and because their pilots were driven in ensuring the safety of the Mechs and Shinobi they escorted many of them had laid down their lives intercepting fire aimed at the shielded transports.

Now however battle was finally being joined on the ground. Naruto was forced to keep Aventis aloft. His ship did not like this turn of events – although his unit must have longed to join Asuma's disembarking Battalion. He was inclined to see off the stragglers before he set her down however.

Most of the spheres – especially the bigger ones had pulled away to protect the pilot's housed Vagaari's remaining destroyers. In addition to shields the destroyers had living sentients housed in transparisteel bubbles in their hulls to dissuade attackers. The Terran space force had already shown that they had no qualms when it came to engaging enemies.

Their society was an odd one, and although they excelled in ground combat they revered the intellectuals who enabled them to traverse the stars. These learned individuals, the Miskara's guard were more valuable than the grunts and slaves that had been sent to colonize Sora, and though a few of their number would already be on ground controlling the spheres that remained the rest would soon depart into hyperspace and return to their home world – Vagar Praxut.

There was a sphere in his sights. The ion sphere that guided the vessel was hot in Aventis' thoughts and it was all he could do to hold her off from making the kill instantly before he examined the greater consequences. No friendlies would be harmed by his strike and he let her bite. She shot off a proton torpedo – she had already known that the way was clear – and the atomic bomb sank right into the housing of the sphere's drive. The counter measures and shielding of the vehicle were no match for the A.I guided bomb, and the resulting conflagration sent more of the enemy streaking back for the safety of the military fort the Vagaari were constructing on the planet.

For the moment he was satisfied. The fight was tapering off and the first round had gone to the invading Shinobi. When they had arrived the civilians escorted by the Chiss had landed into night, but now the day was turning and it was the Vagaari's continent that was succumbing to the dark. Although all of the transports had landed Naruto made a couple more fly overs.

Zabuza's techniques had been copied by Water Element users in the Missing Battalion that Asuma commanded. Naruto was pleased to see that a shroud of fog already concealed their forms as they dug into their landing spot. The soldiers threw heat dulling shrouds over the transports whilst the budding Mech center was a hive of activity as pilots strapped in and prepared for the night's patrol.

The other invading Battalion's employed their own means of defense, but they did not have Zabuza's techniques. They were comprised of regular Shinobi, and in many ways every Battalion was quickly becoming a kind of Hidden Village. They guarded their secrets jealously.

* * *

><p><strong>Sora no Kuni<strong>

Perhaps the Vagaari were more suited to this world than the Terran's after all, for they brought wild beasts with them to the fight. Beasts that would have been at home in the lush jungle that housed Terra's colony on the planet.

A month after the initial contestation of Sora's ownership had commenced things had settled into deadlock.

The Terran colony existed in relative safety protected by external attack by the Chiss Phalanx that still lurked in system. The Vagaari existed in a similar state of peace on their own continent, and both groups were offered further protection by the squads of Fangs and Spheres that refueled out of the colonies.

The war raged between both continents. At times the Shinobi and Mech pilots were forced to defend the jungles around the colony and at other times they struck out for the plains which the Vagaari soldiery controlled to take out a vital installation or disperse a massing of troops.

Both groups had been reinforced by small fleets that darted in-system before gingerly stepping out. The fighting had been particularly harsh in those months as they each attempted to intercept the vital provisions and personnel meant for the enemy, but neither group had created enough damage to warrant the expenditure of lives.

Now Naruto and his unit raced across the plains of the Vagaari continent. The strike he was overseeing today could be the prelude to a greater movement in the war over Sora. If the _Traitors _succeeded then the planet's future might swing firmly into the hands of the Terrans.

Karin was by his side. Zabuza and Haku had recently been promoted and given command over another unit under Asuma's command. That unit raced over the dense and thorny undergrowth as they kept up with his group. Asuma lurked by the river along with the rest of the battalion. That group formed an obvious target that was already drawing the Vagaari forces, and they had dug in for pitched battle.

Whilst the Fangs of their division provided air support they would form a distraction as Naruto's group punched through the Vagaari's mainlines and attempted to take out the power generator that would keep their colony alive over the winter months. There would be no re-supply for a good while, and without the warmth the Vagaari would freeze to death before their brethren were able to intervene. It was a good plan – assuming Naruto and the Shinobi under his command were able to achieve the impossible.

Asuma and Shikamaru had held their own misgivings but in the end they had not been given much choice in the matter. Osvaldus had arrived on the last re-supply and he was nominally in charge of all Missing-nin units. Naruto knew that in this scenario he was just a piece the Sith Lord could move at will – despite how tightly he grit his teeth at the fact. By this time he had given The Aventis free reign and loose orders to protect the colony, so he and his unit were available for deployment.

Osvaldus knew that if Naruto's _traitor's _and Zabuza's unit were able to achieve their objective then he would gain much political favor for coming up with the plan. If they failed the burden would fall squarely on Naruto's shoulders and it was even possible that the blue eyed warrior would be dead in any such scenario. For the Sith Lord it was a win-win scenario.

"They've spotted us," Karin's harsh whisper came over the headset he had strapped on.

"Got that Zabz?" he enquired.

"Hai," Haku the Missing-nin's second in command replied in his mentor's stead.

"Tell the pilots to start bringing their legs forward," Naruto instructed.

Karin whispered to confirm his command whilst he continued to hack away at the undergrowth barring his unit's progress alongside a line of his men. Although he held his Lightsaber in his right hand he used the fighting disc in his left. The bright beam of the energy sword and the deep thrum of his Defensive disc were too jarring for this work. This was quiet work. They had stolen a march on the scouting armies of the Vagaari by doing it so, and it was for this reason that the Mech's stalked slowly miles behind them, and relied on their sensors to evade the Vagaari.

"It was the Mechs that gave us away – just like you thought," Karin supplied.

It was true that he had considered leaving the Pilots behind because of the noise levels their vehicles generated. He counted the troop lucky however. They were on an overhang that overlooked the Vagaari encampment. They had managed to remain obscured so far, and it was only now that the enemy was aware to their presence.

Already lights were coming on in the barrack structure and they were beginning to scramble their drones. He did not fear their air power however. His own support had left base on the other continent several hours after they had crossed the planet's mighty ocean on hastily constructed barges, and he had faith in his people's sense of timing. The Fangs would arrive in time.

For an instant his men stood on the lip. They were dark shadows that hung over the protected city – complete with its cowed Vagaari civilians - The choking forest the Shinobi had hacked through lay behind them and the ground trembled as the Mechs abandoned their clumsy attempts at stealth and surged forward.

Zabuza's concealers had worked their shroud and the Shinobis' craft was efficient. They had called up the mist and it flowed out before them over the edge banking downwards to devour the panicked masses of the gathering defenders.

A single wavering candle was visible through the darkness. The bar seemed to linger with restrained malice in the air - the fist that grabbed its hilt concealed by the enveloping fog.

An angry pulse of dark orange ran through Naruto's lit blade. The wordless symbol spurned his troops forward and they all plunged over the brink.

"Disperse! Mechs engage! Shinobi in support!" Naruto's voice was hoarse from the constant shouting. He could not even see most of the forces under his command. They had arrived under the guise of night but now everything was alight with flame as they fled the scene of the crime. Ghostly shadows fought in the background as beings died and the purple shields of the Shinobi warriors flared in consternation.

He had entrusted the mission proper to Zabuza and he and his unit were fighting a last stand. The Water Shinobi had lost a considerable number of his troop but that could not be helped. The man had pulled a miracle out of his ass and the power station was down. The structure was irretrievable for Zabuza's unit was comprised of Water and Earth Shinobi. The sappers had been sorely missing in Naruto's first holographic taste of modern combat and so he had been sure to include them for the mission. Even though he was stained with the battle's grime he did not regret that choice.

He had known the primary and reserve power facilities were undermined when the Vagaari drones had begun to drop from the skies. Although the Terran jets had then established control over the city razing many pockets of resistance eventually there had been the need for more fuel. The Fangs had been forced to turn away leaving his tattered force to fend for themselves as they put up a fighting retreat across the plains and back to the barges.

They had been ambushed by the same scouting army that had detected them in the first instant. The commander had kept his forces at the edge of the battle for the city and they were fresh. The soldiers and their leader knew that the Vagaari's strength on the planet was broken. Despite whatever tone the General Nets took the Chiss would from now on consider the world Terra's, and they would interdict the system to prevent further Vagaari reinforcements. Therefore these men were filled with pain, and they aimed to sate their anguish with the blood of Naruto's troops.

Luckily he was blessed with Karin's sensory powers, and her loud voice. Although he had shouted himself hoarse it was she who ensured that his men remembered his commands, and his Mech pilots had moved forward into the loose fist formation he favored. His Pyromancers and Lightning Bearers stalked amongst the legs of the powerful weapon's platforms. Some of them clung to the steel backs of the titans in leather slings that were unique to his unit.

These men lacked protection if the Mech's shields gave out but they added extra fire power in the form of cutting Wind Element Jutsu. They were nimble and brave as they scrambled to and fro to find angles of fire for their slashing blasts, for their shields were slaved to those of the Mech's and they could be picked off by ricocheting bolts.

He was in the vanguard. There were many reasons why he and Karin made a good team and this was one of them. She orchestrated the unit's movements from the rear whilst he brought his deadly skill to bear at the fore. Occasionally something he saw in the **moment **was worthy of greater tactical implications, and she saw to such episodes as was fit, but in the main Naruto exploited her sensory abilities to the maximum whilst bringing his deadly weight to bear.

There was no way he could survive without his Defensive disc. The alien Vagaari sought to strike him down valiantly for by now his legend has spread to their slave pits and sparked many a revolt. Already the beings they suppressed were rising up to overthrow their masters now that the habitation had lost power. There was no way they would survive the winter months and everybody knew it.

The great blade protected his back. Its presence was a constant in his mind. He did not realize it truly but his exposure to true battle had been a greater teacher than any simulation. His powers had grown and as it reflected blaster bolts he cut down enemies with gales of wind. Buffeting those that were distant and crushing many in his peripheral vision into mashed paste against the ground. These were often enemies that were threatening members of his beloved troops who fought by his side.

Lightning-nin discharging their bolt and skipping forward to impale enemies with their sorcerous swords and Pyromancers ablaze and easy targets, but doing mass damage with the long range balls of scorching Fire Element they sent careening into the enemy unit's formations.

The enemy commander had learnt many lessons in the month since the war had begun. The short man carried a tall ceremonial mask that made him appear to be much taller than he actually was, and though the battle, and war, had gone badly he was a trained acolyte, and he had a personal escape vessel that would take he and his troop off-planet.

He deployed his men gallantly but they could not avoid entering into Tai-Jutsu range with the Terrans where their Shinobi held the advantage, nor could they destroy the mobile weapon's emplacements – the Mechs- which formed pillars of support for the Shinobi.

Already he could hear a dull drone as the enemy ships returned from their refueling run. He would have to pull his personal guard out quickly. It was unfortunate that they had not brought more Schostri or Wolvkil with them to this world, but that was a lesson learnt for the future.

He did not feel particularly sore over this loss. The acquisition of this planet had been nothing but a feint, and he was alright with allowing the Chiss to feel they held overwhelming superiority over the Vagaari for the moment. Things had changed and they were training more pilots than ever before. The next time you heard of them you will even know the Vagaari commander's name, for his exploits would be heard of on the General Nets.

Naruto in the meantime was still engaged with the commander's men. He noted the unit that broke off and yelled an instruction to Karin but she was prioritizing guiding the Mech's unscathed through the battle. The vehicles were a great weapon but also a weakness for they made obvious strategic targets, and without much air support she had to be careful for the moment. They allowed the commander to leave but still had to deal with his fanatical troops.

Naruto jammed himself into the thick of the fighting sending the enemy quaking back with an explosion of Force power. His glimmering blade left his hand on an arcing flight as it sheered itself through the battle-masks of the Vagaari grunts. The hilt that returned to his hand was stained with blood, but then so was the fist that plunged his fighting disc into the guts of the enemy before him – extracting the mass that clung to its hooked fingers.

A blaster rifle pulled up to the side level with his face. Naruto's defensive disc had already deployed to protect him from an incoming stream of laser fire on his left flank. He was about to reach out in the Force to wrench the weapon aside but there was no need. One of his Lightning-nin had been covering his back and the Shinobi darted forward to intercept the Vagaari grunt.

The clash was very brief although the enemy let off one ricocheting burst that forced Naruto to dart to the side – relieving himself from his entanglement with the man's friend.

Sparking power manifested itself on the chakra metal throwing stars the Shinobi's launcher hurled at the Vagaari's weapon. The rifle exploded before the Shinobi was upon him. He was still alive however when the cool blade the man held punched through his armor. Entering at the collar bone and penetrating through the opposite hip. The threads of Lightning Element froze the being in place as his insides gave out and he died.

Naruto surveyed the battlefield. Karin had given the Mech's free reign to wade forward and their cannon laid down pillars of suppressing fire that cut off the fleeing enemy. The Shinobi that were slung to some of their backs let loose with bursts of wind that killed off the few stragglers who were still going for the mobile emplacements.

He had been so engrossed in the fighting that he had lost his words, and to an extent he had lost his hearing. It was only now Naruto heard the boom of his returning air support and something eased in his chest. It seemed that they had pulled off something incredible, and it did not bother him that he felt relief. He was not bothered by the fact that he cared about the men under his command. Uzumaki Naruto is who he is, and whoever you are and whatever you think – you can be damned. Dattebayo.


	14. Chapter 14: Homework

**SHGS - Chapter Fourteen: Homework **

**Disclaimer: I do not own, or profit, from Naruto, Star Wars, and all associated media. **

"_Thoughts"_

"Speech"

"_**Abnormal sentient thoughts"**_

"**Abnormal sentient speech"**

**- Darklighter**

* * *

><p><strong>Yugakure<strong>

It felt good to be back in Yugakure. After the thorny fight for Sora no Kuni – (which in the end had stretched deep into that planet's seasonal winter as the Vagaari colonists refused to starve and freeze to death quietly) – the whole unit needed rec time.

Just like the outbound flight the return journey had been cramped. That was why Aventis was now suspended from the ceiling of her hanger bay. The bay was open to the elements because the technicians needed the light to work, and they still had a certain instinctive disdain for the artificial lighting and power generators that had flooded their land.

Also the techs working on his War-Yacht came from the Cloud. This was not unusual for that nation had produced a veritable flood of technologists in recent years. Just like the Mech pilots who predominantly came from Konoha the people of the Cloud craved the sunlight and it streamed in to the work space along with a breeze that was cooling because of its intensity, but still warm as it sprayed across their faces.

They stood on an elevated platform. They were not his Techs. They belonged to the army corps as a whole, but they worked on the ship with a pleasing intensity. He supposed this was because his vessel was still the most advanced the planet had to offer – although it could not produce the kind of firepower several of the larger Dreadnoughts could. Working on his ship was a learning experience that would help these ambitious men, and they were the best the world had to offer.

So Naruto had no concerns centered on the Aventis' safety. She herself had been slightly hesitant at first, and she had persistently asked permission to deploy her weapons but he had refused her. Eventually she had settled down to the restructuring and by his estimation it seemed as if she could even be asleep.

He had watched as the tech's reformatted the hold carving in bays to house his pilot's Mechs and rejigged the space for maximum efficiency.

Now they had moved towards the tail end of his mottled orange and black lady. Upon his instructions they were taking out the dueling pit and reducing the vast forge into a small cubicle that was enough to serve his needs.

Of more importance were the soldiers he heard practicing mock war in the distance - his troops. Naruto's private hanger was on a hilltop overlooking the now polluted and gigantic hot spring that serviced the eastern quadrant of Yugakure's military residences.

The space they created in this fashion would be used to construct proper bunks for many of his soldiers, and in addition to the other modifications, including the creation of a general rec room, and the reduction of his own quarters and private living space the Aventis would eventually hold two barrack quarters. The Aventis was quickly becoming a vessel meant for a group, and not for his sole use.

You may wonder why he had decided to take out the dueling pit. But this was just his response to a simple truth. By this time Naruto had become hardened by true combat, and the only practice of worth was that against live opponents.

There was no longer any thrill to facing the holographic foes conjured by the dueling pit, for his blades had become accustomed to the feel and resistance of flesh as he powered through, and the weightless length of his Lightsaber had grown fond of the acrid stench of frayed ions that accompanied every cut. No matter how good it was emersion technology could never quite imitate life. He gained more practicing against his Shinobi for sure.

At least his troop would be reimbursed by the state for the valuable salvage. The chest of money he had liberated from Traya was not completely done for, but a Shinobi's salary in the modern era wasn't that much to write home about - they were soldiers now – not pricey assassins and he would not dip into what was left of the stash just to purchase new holographic opponents.

Naruto was not alone in the makeshift hanger. A couple of his Bolt Blades and Pyromancers were with him. Most Shinobi still did not trust pilots and techs. Some of them, such as these few, eased that distrust by learning as much as they could about the technical arts of the weird 'military' personnel. These armchair critics could drive working techs to the point of madness and stir in them the will to commit suicide. Others did not have the patience for this route.

He started to move. Things were well in hand within the docking space. The intense sound of his men at training came to his ears even though they were quite a distance away. Their camp was one of many within the lot dedicated for the Battalion. They were lucky to be as close to the training areas as they were.

The sounds he heard consisted of the Mech's with their Shinobi accomplices riding shotgun, or running besides being put through their paces. He did not know what the programs they faced consisted of at the moment but recently he found that he only had to join them in the group exercise in the fortnight leading up to a mission. And that was just because he _himself _had to get back into the mindset of fighting within a group.

His unit consistently ranked amongst the high scores although they had not yet reached the lofty heights of some of the veteran first year units. Most days Naruto spent training time sparring with Zabuza and Haku.

When he went on recruitment runs Naruto rarely took Shinobi who relied on Jutsu for their powers, but these two were the exception. In fact they would argue that only the best could employ Jutsu within the mess of the fray and a part of him agreed.

But to his feeling modern war was too quick for endless flashings of hand signals – although there were many powerful techniques that were worth the tradeoff. As far as he was concerned Jutsu could be used for facing Force using opponents, or Mandalorians, for the versatility they gave Shinobi was undeniable, but they were not suited for the small wars Terra had been fighting for almost ten years now on her own behalf, and at the behest of others.

These wars were small by galactic standards, but there were a limited number of trained Shinobi and if they all died who would train their children? Furthermore these 'small' wars were often fought on a scale that could match any of the great wars of Terra's past. Those obscure moments when the world descended into madness and all of its Shinobi forgot that their best work was done in the darkness.

War against enemies using blasters, artillery, and airpower was nippy. The occasional flashy technique might save the day – many regular units were renowned for their reliance on large summons and Jutsu that needed thirty-five hand signs to activate - but his _Traitors _were **known** for their survivability. They had the lowest turnover in the whole army and this was an incredible statistic considering the fact that Asuma's battalion was almost always involved in the harshest engagements.

Naruto's musings had taken him far away from the hanger and the path down the hill was so easy and relaxing that he did not count the steps. The sound of his men at trained play was also fading into the background – not only the crash of Elemental techniques but also the stomps of Mechs.

"Leave papers have just come in," the voice sounded over the receding din clearly.

He turned to find that Karin had followed him although his ears had already marked her identity. The satchel that contained his unit's Overlord Array swung easily over her midriff and chest.

"Karin. It's about time. I was beginning to wonder if they wanted to send us out again. After Sora we may be in high demand," he said as she joined him. The faint path was wide enough for two.

Despite the loss of much of its fighting forces on Nar Shadaa Terra had continued to source out private contracts. If they had not this would have been a clear admission of weakness.

Sometimes particularly famed units were requested – to a higher cost of course. After what they had done to the Vagaari Naruto's unit would quickly become one of those.

"Actually there are already three requests for our unit, but I've told Asuma we can't handle the load. He said he'll farm the contracts out to other poor buggers,"

"Good. We all need the rest. Half of them are still waking up with terrors at night and after an engagement like that who could blame them? They don't say anything because they're hard but a couple weeks before we finally came home I started to notice them losing the edge. Hell even I was losing the edge," Naruto stated with some feeling.

"Why were we out there so long anyway? The battalion I mean," Karin asked as they walked. "The regulars got cycled out on resupply but even after Zabuza's Unit did its part they kept us there - through the winter."

"Probably because we're among the best, but – ironically – because we are also expendable. Apart from Asuma and his team the rest of us are Missing-nin, so no one who mattered cared that Osvaldus put us in unjustified danger just so that he could get rid of **me,**" Naruto stated plainly.

Karin was one of the few people on Terra he trusted. That was probably the reason why he was so calm with her walking besides him. He had since poisoned her mind against the Zabrak warrior who was in charge of all the Missing-nin and she probably knew more of his plans than Naruto himself. In fact he had come to rely on her intelligence to an extent that it was disquieting.

"Not many know that he was out to get you in the first place," she said ruefully, "Sorry I couldn't preempt him. You know he will move again now,"

Her eyes seemed to constantly scan the surroundings and the growing throng. Naruto acknowledged her comment with a slight nod.

His unruly hair was allowed to express itself – though not beyond a suitable length. If you got close you would see the notches that ringed the edges of his Forehead Protector. Each one marked an engagement, and he already had one Protector encased in glass at his apartment at Ichiraku's.

He had finished his growing, and stood over six feet so much so that it was immediately obvious upon meeting him. Naruto had not bulked up like some Commando's did, and though he did not have the nimble and wiry physiques that those with a strong Wind Element did – Asuma was the exception not the rule – he had a hardened body that had been sculpted by two schools of mastery. Karin besides him didn't know it yet, but he was about to add a third.

"I think I'll be leaving the unit for a while," he said simply.

"Why?" her enquiry was suspicious, and her eyes quested for his.

They were approaching the meat districts which separated the garrisons from the rest of the city. Of course it was called this because of the countless masses that were permanently fixed between the corridors into the city proper, and the Unit Encampments.

"Because I don't know when next we're gonna have time off, and we both know that the Unit could do without me for a while," he evaded.

"Hmm,"

Though it was the truth – he was well loved by his men but he also lacked a lot of remorse – he could understand why she was still doubtful.

"Anyway I'll still be around at Ichiraku's. I don't plan on leaving the city like the last time I kept my plans from you it's just that **I **need personal time," Naruto said.

She didn't speak for a moment but something of the sincerity within this statement caused her to relent. She had been amongst them through it all, and unlike that her sensory capabilities had been enhanced by the prototype Overlord arrays that were Terra's first forays into true virgin science. She had _felt _the violence whilst in his battle rage he often desensitized into an extremely menacing witness.

The Overlord devices were made out of Chakra metal yet housed processing chips, and as far as was possible every Unit that contained a capable Shinobi had one.

The links formed by the sensory-nins' chakras created excess storage space and significant processing speed for the natural capabilities of the Shinobi and Kunoichi, and the additional data they were fed by the miniscule drones that were linked to the mask and scoured the immediate battlefield. At rest they were housed within the frame itself.

"I heard a tidbit that you might like," she said and his ears seemed to perk up at the words.

"The Jedi are definitely coming, and they are going to be sending _back _the children that were kidnapped all that while ago. Although there is nothing on the whereabouts of the traitor Kakashi," she said. It was obvious that she was satisfied by his brief moment of perturb'nce, for she smiled slightly.

_How long have you known this for sure? _Naruto wanted to demand but he kept the impulse under control. It would soon be time for them to part, for he was approaching the warren of alleys that would work him through to the back way of Ichiraku's booming business.

"That's good intel," he flattered her instead. "I presume you got this off your contact in Osvaldus' circle?"

"I wouldn't tell you that now would I?" Karin said surprisingly prim. "It's time for you to turn off anyway, and since you're leaving the unit under my command I'll let the others know that they can go their merry ways,"

"Not totally merry," he commanded. He noted that they had indeed reached the warren. "I want a rotating guard on the Ship at all times. The Techs may be good and we **work **for our planet, but that doesn't mean we have to trust its leadership."

"No," she agreed – suddenly vehement. "Not while the ruling council bends its ear to Osvaldus' suggestions.

* * *

><p><strong>The next morning<strong>

**C.T.G/Y (Combined Training Grounds/Youth)**

Oddly it felt strangely like the Academy of his childhood. There were no fields with Kunai stumps or dust sparring circles to be found. But there were neat class room rows in the old style accompanied by three vast Holographic gymnasiums lurking behind.

There was also no fence or gate to speak of since the building was secured within the heart of Terran Military power. Anything that could punch through the shield generators that protected the city would do fine justice to concrete and barbed wire. However he wished there _was _a gate and fence. If anything so that the hordes of children and older stragglers wouldn't consume the school's immediate environs during every recess.

Although Naruto did not see much resemblance between the structures themselves he remembered watching from his lonely swing as his class and form mates ran about, and he observed the school yard action from a similar vantage now. Despite the bedlam one thing gave him pause above all else. It was the seething anger he felt in the Force in the area around the school.

He searched for a face of authority with all his Shinobic skill, yet there were none to be found at break time. The imps were let loose and they would only be called back from their lunches by the whine of the administrative building's Siren.

Naruto cursed his sense of timing as he began to stalk forward. Shinobi academies still functioned in the same manner as prison yards did during recess. Looking around his practiced eyes quickly picked out the various cliques that dominated.

Over there tucked in the western quadrant were the misfits and nerds - while those who had formed strong groups, but had middling skill strutted about the place. These were often fan boys or girls, and they paid homage to the 'geniuses' who maintained a perimeter of cool within their surroundings.

Now he spotted the source of the seething hate. Just like it had been in his day the utter reject occupied the part of the training ground that nobody wanted. Naruto remembered the kinds of spots that had been discarded for his use and this one was similar – out of sight and out of mind.

Naturally the children had stopped to take note of the interloper in their midst although they did not seem to recognize him. Perhaps his fame rested on his blond locks more than he realized, for his dyed brown disguise hid him well, but he had not abandoned the mottled red bronze and grey 'Rec Uniform,' of the NCO corps.

Not one child spoke to him as he made his way through but a tense hush settled over them all as he approached the reject.

Even the black haired castoff evidenced surprise at Naruto's approach. He was gangly but not very tall, and was already evidencing signs of slight stubble although he was what? Two years Naruto's junior? (True age)

From the sullen way he had been munching his cheap purchased lunch it seemed as if he had grown used to being the butt of all jokes and most ostracized out of all the city's students. The boy's eyes were sharp and Naruto belatedly realized that this was what had drawn him to the youth in the first place. The boy was positively hungry for power and his anger had hung like a shroud over the whole playground.

"Hi," he said as his shadow came to loom over the teenager.

As he had expected the young man made him wait for an answer. Gradually the attention of the other kids faded away as the geniuses began to preen in earnest in an attempt to re-establish the hierarchy.

Naruto caught a glimpse of one elite student stalking towards them. She was probably the number one in the graduating set - that or the one that had concealed her actual skill to the most adept degree. As it was she was very interested in what an NCO would want with the number one scrap in the academy.

"What?" the boy's response was coarse. He had risen from his seated position and looked tense like he was ready to bolt or fight.

"You want to go somewhere more private? I would like to speak to you," Naruto probed.

"No I don't think so. You're from Konoha aren't you? I don't see a name tag… Y'all decided to knock me off finally? Like old man Hokage?" the boy began to inch away.

Naruto was still often surprised by how adept his people were at picking each other out by word forms, and his distinctive and obtrusive habit of saying Dettebayo often marked him plain.

"Yeah I'm from Konoha, but I don't quite understand why you think I want to 'Knock you off,' I just wanted to speak to you for a little while,"

Although the boy seemed to want to ease up it wasn't so easy for him to climb down from a position he had claimed. Being a reject was lonely but Naruto knew that it could also become a way of life, and now that he was older he realized that he had rejected his own share of people who had tried to reach out to him.

Like the two whose names he could never remember – the teacher that had _seemed _to like him and the shy black haired girl who had once been in his class - for rejects the only way to survive the social suicide imposed upon them was to become hardened to the external world. To this brown haired youth Naruto was of the external world.

"Listen kid. I'm not going to eat you. I think you and I could help each other out."

"Oh yeah? In what way? You still haven't told me who you are," the nin in training said.

"Let's ease to the side and I'll tell you," Naruto replied. He tried to pitch his voice as he had heard Haku do on the occasions where his and Zabuza's unit happened to have free time at the same moment. The androgynous missing nin's was honey syrup.

The student considered this for a while.

"At the very least it's better than being _here_," Naruto pushed, "and think of how jealous all the other students will feel watching us walk together,"

They were in an open spot so the creeping girl had no choice but to awkwardly stop. She was not alone though for the attention of the school yard invariably centered on the NCO. This being had been to the _stars_, and those of them with savvy could tell that he was a veteran.

"Alright," the boy said hesitantly. Despite his general anger which was still flowing freely in the Force Naruto caught a hint of… innocence? He definitely perceived a tingle of intrigue.

"Good," he said – allowing the boy to catch the barest flash of his wide Cheshire grin. "Let's walk right back through the mob. They'll never know what hit'em."

* * *

><p><strong>Yugakure<strong>

"So let me get this straight," Konohamaru drawled. "You're a fully trained soldier who has been in some of the toughest engagements the contracts board has to offer and you want _**me **_ to teach you how to use Jutsu. Does that about sum it up?"

"Yes," Naruto responded with a slight and rueful grin. Put that way it did seem ridiculous but some strange intuition he couldn't quite fathom yet was telling him that things were progressing on their _ordained _and _right _course.

"I don't know how much I can help you there," the boy shrugged, "I'm not only bottom because of politics. Unlike my uncle I'm not that good with Elemental Techniques," there was a cup of refreshing herbal tea set before him and he stirred his Ice-sugar stick. There was a sticky sweet smell as the stuff began to dissolve and mix together with the tea.

They had located a quiet café a short way from the school. This was after Naruto had assured the boy that he would be returning with him when the gymnasium resumed sessions.

"Don't worry about that," Naruto said. There was no swill set before him although he had paid for the student's fare beforehand.

"Tell me about your Grandfather?"

"Granddad? I just about remember running about in his office you know? I was what… eight? I was eight when _**you **_introduced us to the universe Uzumaki Naruto.'

"What?" a slight hint of surprise caused Naruto to wipe at his mouth with a handy table napkin although he had no drink. His voice did not quaver though, and he retained the bulk of his poise.

"What you thought we didn't know?" Konohamaru looked as if he would laugh but bitterness still tinged his accusing posture.

"Listen," he sipped his drink before continuing, "We're out there in the gym training to be _**Shinobi**_. I may not be much good at it presently, but we all picked you out. A little brown dye won't hide you when you're story is splattered on Terra TV1," Konohamaru chuckled, "I guess the age of the Shinobi is dead, so don't ask me about my grandfather. You can read about him yourself and make up your own damn mind."

You could tell that Konohamaru thought he had gone too far although Naruto remained calm. You could tell because he had not been able to hold back the escalation in his previous verbiage and had only pulled short of outright insulting the non-commissioned officer. The brash young one made another move.

"I should get going," he said, standing up, "no need to see me back."

"Steady soldier," although Naruto barked the command in the Force his voice was silk. "You just spoke to me as if you were one of my _Traitors_. Would you match wills with the Scourging blade of the Zeison Sha?"

Konohamaru stood rooted. Since weapons were not allowed in the city Naruto was unarmed, but he knew about the three blades the warrior before him wielded. Although he did not know which legend pertained to the Zeison Sha.

"I'm not one of your traitors and I don't have what you want," Konohamaru said. He thought about walking out but decided to hedge his bets, "Could I leave sir?"

Naruto stood up. He drank what was left of Konohamaru's abandoned drink but not before melting the Ice-sugar Stick with a blast of _something._

"Follow me. I will change both of your facts," he said.

* * *

><p><strong>Jedi Enclave, Corellia<strong>

She was ready and she was primed. Not that she had learned all there was to learn. Far from it, but the time for teaching was over. She was compelled now to face the universe, for during her training they had both fondled the growing palls over the Force.

They were distinct bodies and thoroughly evil. The unmasked presence of her home world competed with something else.

Something that was _older_ in _**malice**_ – something that lived off of hatred just as a great oak would live off the sun something indescribable.

The order hurried in its own way. Even now Hinata strode besides Pav and they shared small smiles. Each had been lost to her own thoughts but they were united in purpose. She had taken to dropping Qeral's full name and title at the woman's gentle insistence. They did say that people from Corellia could be quite forthright, and it was bad enough that they had to contend with the necessary but somber rituals necessary for her to learn this last gift her Mistress had to give.

"I was never much good with the meditation, but I studied under the old keeper of this particular lore for so long that it seemed I have mastered the teaching of it," Pav said primly. The young woman besides her did not know it, but she walked with the poise of one who had to potential to control legions.

"There could never have been a better teacher for me," Hinata said, "I just hope I can do your teachings justice," now in the distance was the small shuttle that would take them to the Coruscanti Enclave's Flag ship in orbit. Typically there was a whine that reached her ears, and if it had been a windy day their clothes would have begun to flap.

"You still need to be more assertive," Mistress Pav lectured, "That's what is holding you back from true mastery.

Hinata caught herself about to petulantly ask her Mistress what it was that had held _her _back from true mastery but she held her tongue – slightly horrified. _That _would have been assertive enough but at the end of the day Qeral was trying to help, and Hinata knew what was truly bothering her.

They were going back to Konoha. She was going back to Konoha – alongside Sakura and Sasuke. Those two were already aboard the Flagship that would take them back, and she had not yet digested the most astounding part.

_They_ were to be the Jedi's Ambassadors - the three of them from Konoha who had been 'kidnapped' oh so many years ago.

Of course there were to be other Jedi in the delegation. Other Jedi, some career diplomats, and a Fleet that represented the last two pillars of the Core – Corellia and Coruscant, for though the Chiss reigned supreme in the Unknown Regions their henchmen – her people – had begun to take missions that affected the dealings of the _refined_ bureaucrats and bloated plutocrats dwelling in those ancient and _civilized _systems.

"We'll see how I do with being assertive when we get to my planet," Hinata said, "My people have become known for the trait so maybe some of it will rub off," she said.

Pav grinned. Although there was still the other dark blot on the Force to attend to the Order would never be caught unprepared again and she believed that the _proactive_ method was the true spirit of Luker Skywalker.

However some on the Council were aged and at times could be _**deliberate**_ in their approach to crises. Now that their voices had been temporarily hushed she did not think the Order was acting wrongly in this instance, and it was good that her former apprentice seemed determined and did not doubt her loyalties despite the aggressive course the Jedi were pursuing.

Unchecked the Shinobi could easily begin to cause intergalactic friction with the Mandalorians and Bounty Hunting Guilds. This was only natural, for these other groups already carried out the functions that Hinata's people executed so archaically and ruthlessly. When it came down to it there was serious money involved and millennia of prestige - on both sides.

"You'll do just fine," Qeral said as they reached the opening intake hatches, "Looking through the wider scope this is what you have been training to do for the last years. Heading off trouble before it begins, for that is half the battle for the Jedi Mistress," she said.

"Jedi Knight you mean," Hinata said startled. She did not know if there had ever been a Mistress as young as she was.

"A Jedi Knight in title, but a Jedi Mistress all the same," Mistress Pav Qeral said. Looking at the somewhat diminutive women as they took off for the stars in that instant one might have actually thought that Hinata glowed in that instant, for her teacher's praise meant all the worlds to her.

* * *

><p><strong>C.T.GY (Combined Training Grounds/Youth) Admin Block**

**Chief Trainee Coordinator Iruka's Office**

Of course Iruka knew who it was – by now Naruto's childhood story was well told and he became one of those people that everybody, retrospectively, wants to claim to have met or _influenced_. Indeed a celebrity.

The commissioned C.T.C did not realize it until the instant they walked in – Naruto in the comfortable but combat worthy mottled rec uniform of the allied forces – and gangly Konohamaru trailing sullenly behind.

Iruka cleared his throat. At times like this his seated position gave away the advantage to tall and intimidating visitors.

"Good day. How can I help you?" he said.

"Good day sir," Naruto growled. There was a blaze of recognition in those cerulean pools but they quickly clouded over dull aqua.

He hadn't expected his former student to pick him out. The boy had been young and by all accounts had been through a lot. He shifted uncomfortably in his seat.

"Welcome. Please take a seat,"

"I think I'll stand Iruka Sensei," Konohamaru said. Iruka had never been able to see eye to eye with that one. Not after what had happened with his grandfather.

From Naruto's stance it was clear that he was siding with the boy and an unjust flame sprang up within Iruka.

What did these two think he _– a bloody Chuunin_ – could do when Kage level Shinobi and extraterrestrial beings stomped about?

"What do you want then?" he sank into the figure they both knew very well – the figure that had stilled them in the classroom and still retained some small effect now.

"You should be in the gymnasium Konohamaru… and you… I don't know why you're here but it seems like everything is working out for you in the end," Iruka paused, "I'm glad," he said slightly softer – then standing up and coming round to meet them, "I'm glad but I can't have you bringing disruption to the academies workings. Things here are different than what you experienced back Konoha, and I don't know what Konohamaru has been telling you, but he hasn't been doing that well. Surely you can empathize with that?

"So you know who I am then?" a measure of respect had entered Naruto's presence from the moment Iruka stood up from his desk. Now the oppressive cast of the room blanketed as it had been by charged and concealed emotions cleared.

"Yes," Iruka said simply, "I know you Uzumaki."

"Good," Naruto's motion was swift. It wasn't violent, but it was as if there was no transition between standing still and beginning to pace in a defined space. His thighs jacked like hydraulic machines yet still retained the spring of human muscle and the lithe slow grace of a trained… Something more than a Shinobi.

"You know who I was, and you know who I am now. The nets have seen to that. What you can't see is that Konohamaru right now… _is __**me**_, and I am going to take him out of this place. Either the way I was taken off this planet in the first place – Kami knows it did me some good – or with your permission. Whichever way it is we will be leaving shortly," Naruto said. He stopped pacing to look at Iruka. He just waited.

It took a moment for Iruka to digest this, but he was not Terra's only C.T.C officer for nothing.

"I don't know if you can do that…" he began, "First off you're just an NCO – no offence – and it would take a lieutenant to do what you're asking. It's been done before you know. There are quite a few promising students attached to the lines at NCO level. That is why we kept the genius system," Iruka warmed to the subject, "I have no doubt you noticed it on your way in," he said.

"It was just like in the old days," Naruto murmured, "No supervision and hierarchy based on knowing who could beat you to a pulp if you got on their nerves."

"You realize that it's necessary?" Iruka asked. He had idly wandered back to his desk during the conversation, and Konohamaru was also seated still trapped as he was in the perfidy of youth.

Iruka steeped his fingers together and glared at the boy. "And that brings me to my second point. Even if I wanted to release this one to you his performances don't merit it. There will be uproar. His performances haven't merited it since…"

"Since what?" Konohamaru demanded. He had been meek and sheepish at the start of Iruka's lectur'ly put down but he got fired now. He was still hot over what had happened to his grandfather.

"This is what I'm talking about," for once in his life Naruto played the placating role. He would never have been able to do so if he had remained with Traya and not returned to the side of his own people.

"Konohamaru needs to be separated from all of this if he is to thrive," he said, "And we all know that Konohamaru has it in him to be the Third's equal," he paused to look at the boy. The youth bristled but the spines were formed of pride and not anger – just a brief flash.

Iruka remained steady. When all was said and done this man had spanned tens of worlds while he remained on planet doing an expanded version of what he had always done. The only difference in his life these days were the occasional leave breaks he used to go to the orbital casino and spend a few nights in the lunar hotel. He was one of a lucky few and it was through the grace of many discounts that officers in the military were able to entertain themselves in this manner.

"Don't worry about my being a lieutenant," Naruto said, "An announcement is going to be made within the week. You'll just have to take my word on that one," he said.

Iruka nodded slowly. He tried his best not to eye the warrior with suspicion. The boy he had known had been prone to all sorts of tricks.

"Just do the paperwork for it and Konohamaru will be ok. He has already agreed to be my attaché. Haven't you?"

"Yes," It was barely more than a whisper, but Iruka could tell that for once this was something that the boy _might _take seriously.

"I'll take care of him," Naruto said. Not much softer, but softer.

Iruka exhaled. The words came out with his breath but instead of shaming acquiescence he felt sweet relief.

"Alright," he said.

No more words were needed. Naruto hesitated as if he would say something more but maybe for this he couldn't find the words. Konohamaru had gotten up at some point and was now standing in the general vicinity of Naruto's perimeter. Already Iruka's keen eyes were picking out the boundaries that were breaking down between the two. It was what had convinced him in the first place.

These two _wanted _to be teacher and student. Konohamaru didn't know it but he wanted to be close to his new master. Close enough to protect him from unseen dangers. And as for Naruto… Naruto didn't know it but Naruto…

Iruka smiled…

They were almost out of his office. The plush space was meant to be inviting to the senses of civilian parents fretting over the new children who had been taken into the academy or had been temporarily ejected due to injury. It was completely alien to what he had been trained to do as a Shinobi. For Kami's sake he remembered the battle against the Nine Tails. He had been _**there.**_

"Hey Iruka," Naruto called back over his shoulder. They were more or less gone but the man paused and there lurked a hint of that old grin.

"I know you cared. I didn't realize it before I walked in here. In fact I didn't even know that you would be here, but now I know. Just looking at your face says it all…"

Iruka smiled and felt a slight blush beginning to dimple his cheeks and the bridge of his nose. War had really made his old student seem **older, **but there was still a remnant of boyish charm.

"One day Konohamaru will be back to say the same," Naruto promised, and then… and then they were gone.


	15. Chapter 15: Another Beginning

**SHGS - Chapter Fifteen: Another Beginning **

**Disclaimer: I do not own, or profit, from Naruto, Star Wars, and all associated media. **

"_Thoughts"_

"Speech"

"_**Abnormal sentient thoughts"**_

"**Abnormal sentient speech"**

**- Darklighter**

* * *

><p><strong>Yugakure<strong>

"Konohamaru. Stop doing that. You _**know **_you're breaking my concentration," Naruto said.

They were in the shrubbery by one of the many hot springs to be found in Yugakure. Konohamaru had brought him to the space after a day of eating and rest at Ichiraku's bustling establishment.

"I'm bored and this is actually taking pretty long," Konohamaru said. He hadn't been lying when he told Naruto that he did not have much to teach him but the boy was surprisingly able with transformation techniques, and as Naruto sat squat legged and tried to access his rusty chakra pathways Konohamaru paraded before him wearing the endless forms of voluptuous and nude women.

"Do it already," he had taken a blond female form that bore an uncanny resemblance to the NCO, "It was the first thing you learned as a kid. Remember?" cobalt pools blinked at Naruto slowly.

"I didn't expect it to be this difficult," Naruto admitted – exasperated. "You're _really _not helping," he said.

"Fine. _Fine _I'll sit," Konohamaru said. His jarring transformations came to a sudden halt and Naruto was greeted with the suspicious black orbs and dark brown locks he was used to.

"Thank you," Naruto said with feeling as the boy proved true to his word.

In truth everything was perfect for him to reconnect with this lost heritage and it was he who had not fully gauged the task set before him.

Konohamaru had picked out a gorgeous spot full of the kind of tranquility necessary for this kind of rehabilitative work, and the academy student had only started fidgeting after an hour or so of silence had elapsed.

Naruto knew what he had been doing over that hour. Horrifying work that the part of him that was still Sith knew must be kept secret. Even from his new apprentice and erstwhile teacher for while he liked the youth he was very far away from trusting him.

Years of disuse had left his chakra pathways dry and thorny. They had not even been exposed to the benefits of the _pure _Light-side of the Force as he was a follower of the destructive Sith path. Furthermore there was very little his learning at the feet of the Zeison Sha could do for him. Those warriors had not been renowned for their healing arts.

He did not betray it to Konohamaru but that first half hour had been pure agony as he tried to solve the problems with visceral force. Not only mixing the _Force _with his body energy in the special organ that all Shinobi possessed – the very same organ that set them apart from the baseline human population – but also forcing it to trickle into his chakra network. His organ had rebelled against this sudden use and it was at this point that Konohamaru began to distract him.

After the boy settled down again he gritted his teeth and settled into a deeper meditation. This was very difficult. The Sith trances Naruto was used to employing were fueled by negative emotions. He had no choice but to turn to his other heritage as well, so he did his best to enter a normal Sith state but retain a mindset closer to his Zeison Sha heritage.

For the first time, ironically, he achieved a synthesis of application that would have made his tutors in both disciplines feel proud. No matter that the sentiment would have been grudging – as if eked from a stone – coming from Traya. Now confident Naruto examined his ravaged Shinobi organ network on light mental wings.

The damage was truly extensive. His rusted chakra pathways would never bear the full load they had been destined to carry and their growth had been stunted. That was not all. Now that he had achieved a deep trance he saw something else. An unbidden flash of memory came of the time when Deimus had first taken him. He remembered the words the Dark Lord had uttered.

'_**I will now claim the beast,'**_the Dark Lord had boomed into his mind in that instant.

So Naruto followed that memory as he had been unable to do as a child – untrained and unskilled as he was then. He followed the Dark Lord's touch as the corrupted Neti reached into him and into the very same chakra networks he was trying to salvage in the presence.

His innards were a very different scene then. The paths had been twice any normal size as had been his processing organ. He could see that two types of chakra flowed within and it was because of this that his organ and accompanying network had become deformed. As it was he was only barely producing enough chakra to hold back the red torrent and it was no wonder that he had always found chakra control difficult.

He looked deeper. He looked to the point that Deimus' dark hand grasped for. It was a cage of blackness that contained the source of the vile red chakra. Whatever was contained within sent out whipping lashes of energy and it was these streams that polluted the rest of his chakra system.

Deimus ripped it out. Deimus ripped it out just as Naruto was beginning to properly study it. The Dark Lord possessed insane mental abilities because even now as Naruto was he could not pierce the veil Deimus had thrown around the memories attached to the ochre cage.

Naruto should have been able to access them. Theoretically he was so immersed in trance that he should have been able to access memories of life in his mother's womb but alas he was blocked.

He knew then that the only way to know what he had lost and who he was for sure was to rip the information out of the Dark Neti's skull.

Naruto did his best to let go of his frustration and settle back to the task at hand, but Konohamaru, observing from a seated position on a rock in the center of the hot-spring – covered in steam and with his exposed feet dipped in the water – noticed the slight twitches that threatened to break his meditative lotus. They were the twitches of a warrior who longed to reach for familiar weapons and fight.

Even as he had been trying to hunt down the cause of Deimus picking him out from a planet of Shinobi youths in the first place Naruto had been doing his best to salvage his chakra engine.

By now his pathways were all active and little pools of chakra were beginning to form at access points such as the ones on his wrists and the soles of his feet.

However the stream was painfully thin, and even at that his withered system was just managing to cope. Now that the initial panic had passed he could see that with time he would regain much of what he had lost. That was if he spent the time working diligently to exercise his engine.

But what had been lost…

What had seen lost was lost, and he would just have to make do.

It took him almost as long to come out of the trance as it had for him to fall into it. Connected as he was to the Force he felt a probably unprecedented sensation. He was awash in the power associated with the Sith and Jedi, yet through his veins flowed the ancient heritage of his people. Even though his supply was restricted he felt revitalized in a way that he couldn't believe was possible.

"It feels good doesn't it?" Konohamaru grinned. Naruto realized that his eyes had been wide open and he had been staring at the youth. It was hard to make out the boy's figure shrouded as he was with the mini-lake's steam.

"Reminds me of the first time I made my chakra start to flow. I felt unstoppable," the boy said.

"It's addictive," Naruto allowed as he clambered to his feet. He was unused to the new/old power and it made him clumsy. His limbs were stronger than they should have been and his reflexes sharper. These might sound like good things but for a warrior who relied on the prescient abilities given to him by the Force and an intimate knowledge of his own body's abilities to guide him through battle they were fairly catastrophic.

"It's going to take a while getting use to this again," he commented drily.

"Just one question," Konohamaru looked at him sidelong as Naruto made to head out of the brush by the hot-spring and into the common well of humanity that would lead them back to Ichiraku's place. The teenager stood up from his look out spot and after some well-judged skips to neighboring pond stones he took up Naruto's brisk stride.

"How come you're channeling so much wind chakra?" he asked. Naruto had been wondering how Konohamaru managed to keep his shoes on and not get his trousers wet. He noticed for the first time that the youngster wore his trousers cut short and that he favored old school open top sandals.

Because of this interesting line of enquiry – the boy would definitely have to change the footwear at the very least if he was to be attached to _**his **_troop – it took him a while to become aware of the question, and then even more time to understand that what the boy said was true, and that he did not know why that was.

"Huh?" genuine befuddlement clouded Naruto's face and for an instant he looked innocent again.

"Usually people have a base of 'normal' chakra and then they make nature chakra as they see fit. That's because you need base chakra for non-elemental Jutsu and also in case you have more than one affinity," Konohamaru said smugly, "as you are you're gonna be restricted to wind techniques… although to be honest I've never seen anyone do what you're doing. I shouldn't even be able to _**notice, **_but I guess you're still rusty when it comes to hiding you're chakra signature," he said.

"I spent some time on a desert planet," Naruto mused as they walked. "This was before I came back and not too long after I left for the first time. It's still the only world I've ever really lived on, and I think that maybe my training there changed me somehow. Probably I already had a strong Wind affinity and that just cemented it," Naruto said.

He could tell the youth was trying hard not to be impressed by this statement from the arched eyebrow directed his way. Shinobi had become obsessed with other worlds. As a cadre of fighters they were to a one curious, and coupled with their intensively secretive natures this had proved historically to be a violent recipe.

They had exited their secluded hot spring and it was light evening. This area was known for the springs and from this time onwards you never knew if you would find training Shinobi or cozened – solicited – lovers if you happened to idle through.

"I spent some time on Tatooine though," Naruto said and immediately regretted it. Tatooine was a famous planet and Konohamaru was intensely curious about the galaxy like most teenagers who had lived through times such as his.

His worst fears were realized as he watched his new student's eyes light up with cunning.

"Oh yea?" the boy drawled. Naruto was thankful that they would soon enter the crowds and have to draw their conversation to a close.

"What's that planet like then?" he asked innocently.

"It's… a desert. Like the other one," Naruto sighed and closed his eyes. "Out of the whole galaxy it seems I've chosen to spend my life in the most _arid _environments," he said.

He guessed it was worth it for the admission seemed to make his apprentice happy.

* * *

><p><strong>Terran System<strong>

**Coruscanti Flagship P.D.J.O (Permanently Designated to the Jedi Order) **

There is no such thing as a schematic for Flagship construction, and such things existed even for advanced vehicles such as Battle-Yachts or the vessels employed by the Media Corporations. This Flagship befitted the economic powers of the planet that had commissioned it – Coruscant. It was a vast construction that not only had a fighter compliment that could rival most designated carriers, but also carried arms, armor, and shielding to match any other vessel of its size.

The Jedi were not a very demanding bunch, but everything they needed was provided aboard the P.D.J.O Flagship. Their Ship's catering facilities and well-appointed lounges and living spaces were left for those guests they housed on occasion when they took on great roles in interstellar diplomatic affairs and currently the small delegation were all clustered in the capital ship's nerve center.

This was the first time Sasuke had seen his home system, and it was a bright one. His world Terra was the third one out of the sun. Currently their Ship and accompanying flotilla lurked near the system's largest gas giant, but they approached with speed.

He marveled at the hive of activity. The sensory arrays only went crazy when they had to track the traffic in a system like Coruscant but he could see that the Techs working on translating their data feeds had more coming to them than they had expected. To the common man's reckoning this was an unwarranted excursion to a backwater, and the Jedi lobby wasn't having an easy time of it justifying the expense to the senate.

Twinkling lights further away were not stars. Those were the vehicles of the Chiss Phalanx that was normally birthed in a nearby arid system and only came into this one to resupply or defend Terra from a common threat. Over in the southern quadrant of the rows of Pilots and Techs that governed the Capital Ship's he noted the communications people. He could not hear them for the Order's transparisteel deliberation chamber was impervious to sound – although there was a comms system – but he saw the way their mouths formed words. They, along with a 'normal' diplomat kept up a running dialogue with the Chiss and Yugakure Tower Control.

His compatriots were all about him. They were seated together as 'knights of the round table,' but all of them could detect the subtle press of rank in the Force. Most still wore their traditional robes – some had conceded to donning the pantaloons and tunic version - which while _suited_ for battle were not _meant _for it. Sakura wore robes, but he and Hinata didn't – along with a scattering of some others.

The pair of them wore the uniforms given to those Jedi who took it upon themselves to serve in the army. The garments were the exact contrast of those worn by their compatriots although they were no less elegantly crafted. The armor was _suited _for diplomacy but not _meant _for it, and his was black and gray whilst hers was dark green.

They had not forgotten the ways of their people. She was a certified Terran princess whilst he… he hadn't forgotten his clan, or what had happened to them. They were under no illusions although he got the impression that the dark haired knight – who he hadn't seen for a long time – was under the impression that she was here to _save _her world.

As for Sasuke he still couldn't understand why he was here at all. If the order wanted him to shun the darkness then why were they making him confront it? He would much rather have been at the under-level hospice they had built back home where he knew his role as guardian and had been respected on the street. He had been doing good things there.

Sasuke had spent so long with his Padawan braid that now it was gone he kind of missed it. The thug gangs he had kept in check guarding the hospice had known of its significance but if anything this only added to his legend and that of his Master. It wasn't that he had relished their fear but he had certainly taken full advantage of it.

The Order had released him from that lowly rank conditionally – albeit on the back of his good work at the hospice, but even then it did not help that he followed the same sect as absent Master Orton and used Force Lightning, or that on a couple of occasions he had committed acts that some may consider... questionable, but to him were logical and well within the framework of Jedi decorum.

The way it was put to him it would not be good for his people to cop that he was not even a full Knight and yet was appointed to them as an Ambassador. The whole thing would have been an even bigger joke.

"Are we all ready?" Mistress Pav Qeral asked politely. Sakura's Master was absent just like his. Whilst Orton preferred to be at the thick of 'real diplomacy' it was hard to pull Sakura's Ithorian Master away from his government sponsored research facility. After all these years he still did not know the greenish-brown being's name, and he wasn't quite sure that Sakura did either.

Slowly the Jedi conveyed their preparedness to the Mistress either with subtle gestures or soft words. Sasuke did the same although he saw the slight frown that entered Hinata's features. According to the Council the three of them had been made joint Ambassadors for this mission and as such one of them should have called the session to order after they had judged the individual Jedi to have completed their introspections.

She had quite deliberately not seated herself to the left of her Mistress in the customary position of former apprentices who were not yet Masters themselves, but it would seem that more would have to be done to get the rest of them to take her feelings seriously.

Out of all of them Sakura seemed overwhelmed by the eminent position given to them and it made her timid – whilst he was cynical concerning the whole thing. However it seemed that Hinata was prepared to fight the battle that they both shied away from. It was funny but the girl who he had remembered as being so shy was determined not to be a puppet.

"We think that we should brief you on our people and their customs before we make first contact," Hinata improvised glancing at him and at Sakura for support. He smiled at quickly muted expressions of shock that clouded the faces of some of his fellow Jedi. In normal circumstances her forthrightness was a breach of protocol – especially as she was wresting control from her former Mistress – but then again her Mistress was a part of the Council that had chosen to _make _her an ambassador.

"I hardly think its proper for -" Lovett Alcatraz began to speak, but Sakura cut him off mid-sentence.

"We also have some expectations as to how _**our **_world will function now that they are a part of the galaxy," she said smoothly. Sasuke who knew her better than most may have been able to tell that she was uneasy with the executive power that had apparently been given to them, but she had the Jedi poise the Order itself had instilled in her and words were cool.

Amusingly there had been a time when Sasuke had begun to suspect that she held feelings for the painfully handsome scholar but that seemed to have passed. At that time the situation had inspired weird sensations in him, and now he had ruefully come to realize that it was easy to be aloof when you had a legion of fan-girls. If the sole survivor threatened to leave your side you might just become jealous… or come to a realization.

Sasuke decided that he couldn't leave them fending for themselves. None of the higher ranked Jedi had uttered a word and some of them – such as Hinata's Mistress – had not betrayed any emotion whatsoever, but they looked at the girls intently and even he who had not yet said a word was not spared those piercing glances.

It dawned on him that his classmates had inspired a sort of informal hearing. In truth they were all acting as if they had to justify the appointment that had been given to them, and why their words should be heeded.

He understood Hinata's purpose. At the very least she wanted to know where they really stood, for only then could they give their all. He decided to be blunt. The other Jedi expected it of him anyway – just as they expected it from his Master.

"To be honest the Terran's will immediately see through our ploy if we are to be ambassadors in name only," he said looking directly at Pav. "If we are to truly lead then maybe the rest of you should pay attention to what Hinata and Sakura have to say…" this was a bit strong, and from the outraged expressions that greeted his words he knew that he had to tone it down a bit with some humility. "I confess that I have not given much thought to the literature provided to us, and I am sure that whatever they have drawn from that dossier and their memories of life in Konoha can provide us all with some guidance," he said.

"Very well," Mistress Pav Qeral finally spoke again. "We shall listen to the presentations of _**Knight Ambassadors**_Hinata and Sakura although I am sure that many of us have surmised what they have to say from our _**deep **_study of the _literature _provided," she glanced at Sasuke and the hint of a smile played on her lips.

"However I want us to remember the pertinent fact at all times. The Sith have infiltrated this planet, and the order hasn't faced one of their ilk in a hundred and fifty years. The priority as always is the purification of the galaxy, and under no circumstances can that Order be allowed to flourish once more. Hinata," she gestured at her former Padawan. With that motion she left no one in doubt as to who was in charge. "You may proceed."

* * *

><p><strong>Yugakure <strong>

He was getting used to having Konohamaru besides him and he was driven to distraction by the news he had just received so Naruto paid him very little mind.

The boy strode by his side as they headed to from Ichiraku's to the thoroughfare that divided the city. Public transportation Speeders zipped to the outer ring which housed all its contracted Shinobi, and back to the center. Usually Naruto preferred to walk but the situation called for haste.

He was pondering his options so deeply that he took no note of the pleasant sunshine and was no longer amazed by the Wind Chakra that now flowed through his veins constantly. It had only been three days since he had taken his new apprentice under wing.

Naruto's face was scrunched with consternation because of the news he had received from Karin over his comm. It would deceitful to say it was news, for there were _**two **_distinct but related events that were to cut short his sabbatical.

The first piece of news was the arrival of the Jedi envoy flotilla in system. All of a sudden Terran space was cramped as the protective Chiss fleet in a nearby desolate system warped in, and jostled for room in the vacuum with Terra's own naval forces and those that approached from the core worlds.

The second item was related to him. It was related to his immediate promotion to the rank of Captain, and his being summoned to Council Chamber without delay.

"I need you to go find my Ship. It's on a hill berth and you can't miss it. Hanger oh-two-three," Naruto said to Konohamaru.

'Where are you going to be going," the boy said. "Abandoning me already?" despite himself the lad was beginning to draw close to the former NCO who treated him as if he were one of his soldiers. He wasn't comfortable leaving his side, nor was he ok with meeting the grizzled troop Naruto had regaled him with stories about without his new commander.

"You'll be fine they don't eat human kids," Naruto read him. "Besides I already let Karin know that you will be coming and I gave you my comm line right?"

"Yea," Konohamaru said hesitantly. A Speeder bus going in the right direction was rapidly approaching.

"I guess I'll see you later then," he said.

"Good. I'll call for you. I can't have you meet the council looking like a scruffy academy student. Someone from the camp will outfit you properly and then you can join up with me ok?" Naruto said.

"Oh!" Konohamaru brightened. He had thought that he would be separated from the powerful Force user for an extended period of time.

"Alright sir," he said as the speeder came to a halt on silent and efficient repulse-lifts. "See you when I see you."

He watched as the boy left his side. The rapid transport would soon take him to into the hills that ringed the city's vales and hot-springs. He himself would walk because his destination was not so far. It was about fifteen minutes to the city center and after that he would find an armed escort to take him in to meet the council.

Naruto kept up a brisk pace and it was not long before that short span had elapsed. He had paid little heed to the evolving faces set before him – although it was still somewhat jarring even to him to see alien merchant tourists scouring the market districts and haggling over technology imports and rare mineral exports in the discreet and shaded cafes.

The babble that assailed his ears was mostly of native origin although Basic was quickly assuming its scientifically designed role in society as intergalactic trading language. Already some of that inorganic tongue had seeped into the argot of his people.

He was soon in the governmental districts and here the public transportation network gave way to private vehicles. High ranked diplomats from the Elemental Nations were present in their proper portions. Over there the fat water country representative is gorging himself in the eatery and by the side the nerdy Lightning envoy perusing the day's news on a shaded bench.

This area was dotted with sprawling parks to accompany the miniature network of springs that formed at the heart of the Land of Hot Water's valleys. To be sure pollution was beginning to creep in from the vast industrial and fusion works that had begun to spring up in the countryside beyond the encampment hills. Naruto's trained nose could sense the stench.

But the glossy high-rises that ringed this area designated it as one for the wealthy and the streets were clean. There were a plethora of Speeders for hire and he selected one without haste. It was one that was marked out for use by Shinobi only for it was usually they who had business within this part of town and yet did not have the funds or proclivity towards acquiring one for themselves. It was said that old man Ōnoki hired one to this day to take him from his private quarters to the Council room when he was in town. He hired one till this day and did not follow the lead of Awho had the most ostentatious lurid yellow ride imaginable.

At all hours of the day there was congestion here. There was an exclusive highway that could take residents and visitors directly to and from the airport and the traffic this brought as Shinobi's returning from their missions had to pass through the Council Tower for their commanders to debrief was horrifying.

Naruto had experienced it from the other side as a surly NCO waiting for Asuma and Shikamaru to conclude their reports and return, and wondering why the rest of the sizeable troop had to wait for them in the first place, but now he witnessed it from the point of view of a city center native. The going was slower than when he had been walking and he almost growled in frustration.

"How much longer?" he asked the cab driver curtly.

"Once we get through this bit we'll be there," the dark haired woman replied confidently. She was one of those who had embraced the new reality eagerly and she took much pleasure in her simple job. From the way she handled the controls Naruto guessed that she could probably fix the engine if it happened to malfunction. In point of fact she probably had a isotope resistant pair of overalls and hood for just such an occasion.

"See to it then," he said.

_Dattebayo..._

* * *

><p><strong>Aboard the Shuttle approaching Yugakure Spaceport <strong>

Hinata's attempt to wrest control away from her Mistress had gone as well as could be expected. Sakura's sharp mind had caught on to the girl's angle as soon as she calmly made her presence felt in council, and her friend's courage had bolstered her own, but the girl's dire predictions had put the worm of fear in her and in quite a few of the others.

After Mistress Pav Qeral had seemed to take the situation in hand she would have despaired if not for the calm smile that dominated her clear eyed friend's gaze later.

Sakura had come to realize after they all bustled away and prepared for first contact in their own ways that her friend had not expected to win the first battle for control of the envoy against the ranked members - although they had all been amazed by how in-depth her analysis of Terra's stellar intentions were and had all been poleaxed by her forecast of an assignation attempt within the first month of their sojourn on the planet. Even her mentor's eyes had narrowed with worry at the tail end of the bold and petite girl's plea for high alert.

The Flagship was stationed many miles beyond the moon at a non-threatening distance but well within range of the planet's system defense emplacements. Bereft of its reassuring presence and because of Hinata's predictions she had changed out of her Jedi robes before boarding the medium sized transport that ferried them towards the planet.

She did not possess army grade equipment like her friend did, or like Sasuke had, but she had comfortable and reinforced pantaloons and a form fitting tunic that were both done up in an attractive arrangement of soft blue highlights and brilliant white.

She sighed as she settled back on the headrest. Stress had tired her out but the adrenalin their imminent return to the homeland had stirred up within kept Sakura wide awake.

Although there were no viewports, for this was a retrofitted military vehicle and the space accommodated armor and shield nodes instead, there was a large screen that showed the rows of seated Jedi, diplomats, and commandos the approach.

Some faces were grim but Lovett – she did not know why he had been seated beside her and she still felt embarrassment over the library incident – was confident. He wore military garb like Sasuke, but his was a somber brown color although a little gold and silver filigree added some class.

For the first time she saw his Lightsaber for the scholar usually went without one when attending the lectures and seminars she had spied him at. It seemed that he usually wore it strapped to his back for the awkward cylinder was balanced on his knees but its finely etched metal form did not draw away from his calm or looks.

Knight Alcatraz noted her gaze.

"Interesting isn't it?" he asked; familiar like but still polite. "Not many of us have ever stood by the double bladed saber. They say that it isn't any good when faced with concentrated blaster fire, but I'm a bit of an eccentric. Not many scholars have done proud service with the commandos," Lovett said.

"What engagements have you been in?" she asked suddenly conscious of the simple and clean construction of her blade, and mindful of the basic defensive style of saber combat that she clung to as a healer.

"Engagements concerning minds and souls," he said mysteriously and poetically. "It wouldn't be polite to say," he elaborated with a rueful smile as he brushed his right hand through his unbound mid-length hair. "My commando buddies wouldn't thank me for it."

"What do you think about what Knight Hyuuga said?" Sakura asked. The specter of combat stopped her from relaxing.

Concern entered Lovett's casually slouched posture and he sat up smoothly. Reassurance laced his voice.

"I hope the fighting doesn't arrive too soon and when it comes down to it I still trust in the Force…" he said. "As should you. You're stronger than you think you are Sakura. And what you think of as weaknesses are some of the strengths that our Order cherishes most dearly,"

"And what would those qualities be?" she asked. She didn't know whether to be flattered or to be indignant.

"Your beauty and your fear," he said promptly. "Your beauty because our Order has always treasured aesthetic harmony above all else – you only need to look at the temples we've constructed over the millennia for proof – and your fear because we loath violence, and the Jedi who forget that fact often find themselves on the road dark," Lovett purred.

"I-I I see," Sakura stammered. There was a time when she found his – by Jedi standards – overbearing suave appealing but nowadays she grew tired of his swag.

She took a reflexive and instinctive look towards where Sasuke was sitting. Things had changes since the time they had spent together at the hospice. He protecting while she healed and deprived the dealers of their main cash cow – relapsing addicts.

He was ahead of her and on the other row. She could only catch a glimpse of his hair which had grown out in the same shape as his youthful style to crown the top of his seat.

"Let's hope the qualities you speak about can inspire us all," she said.

Lovett had by this time noticed that her gaze had been off him for a steady period. His eyes followed hers and he saw Sasuke.

"Inspire the one or inspire us all one wonders?" he said. Could it be that a tint of meanness entered the Jedi's tone? "Youth is to be cherished," his hand came to rest on the grip of his Lightsaber.

Now that her eye had been drawn close Sakura could make out the joint where he would be able to break the blade into two and wield each separately.

"But experience is to be _**treasured," **_Lovett Alcatraz said.

* * *

><p><strong>Yugakure<strong>

**Council Chambers**

When Uzumaki Naruto had pictured his ascent into the officer cadre in his fantasies it was not to occur in this fashion. He had dreamed about storming the place leading a full blown coup, and backed by missing and regular Shinobi alike ten or fifteen years from now, for although it was only whispered the NCO was already an army star.

He appealed to the regulars because he came of them and had never renounced them whilst the missing nin were already his – despite whatever orders Osvaldus gave they were his and Asuma's – because he fought alongside them.

That was not what reality had to offer. His chauffeur drove him to the gates of the Council Tower and then charged him an exorbitant fare. Night had fallen. In this season dusk transitioned swiftly and he had experienced that segment of time stuck in traffic. It seemed as if the Council had taken note of his tardiness for someone was waiting to escort him in at the gates. It was not a Shinobi but the man was a high-ranking diplomat.

"Sorry. You all made me come in a hurry. I didn't have time to fetch my I.D," Naruto lied. Mischievously and petulantly because he was still peeved off at his taxi driver.

"No need for that," the beautiful blond woman said. From her accent and dark skin he could tell that she hailed from the Lightning Country.

"I've identified you and the Full Council is already in session," she said.

"The Full Council is in session!" Naruto whistled.

The Full Council being in session meant that the Chiss ambassador and Elemental Country High Representatives were present. No wonder they had made him a Captain. The meeting would have lost all decorum if a common Lieutenant or – gasp – NCO was in attendance.

"You need better security if all the higher ups are involved," he admonished her playfully as they headed towards the wherever she was taking him.

Don't worry," she said as they walked briskly. "By the old labels I'm a full Jounin, so I think I can detain you if you turned out to be rogue, and yes I do know of your reputation," she said.

"How did you know I was going to ask that?" Naruto smirked.

"According to your reputation you're fond of telling people about your reputation," she said smiling.

* * *

><p><strong>Yugakure Spaceport <strong>

Perhaps it was because it was night time and he was returning to a planet he associated with horrifying events, or perhaps it was because of Hinata's warning , but either way Sasuke was uneasy after their landing.

This was what saved his life, and because a similar state of watchfulness pervaded the minds of all the delegation's Jedi, saved the lives of most of the diplomats that were riding alongside them in the Speeders that had been provided escorted by a planetary guard.

Unlike the career legates in the back seat who muttered to each other in dignified tones and were reassured by the hulking Mechs that escorted them Sasuke was ready for it when it came, and when it came the first attack came with deadly intent.

At a vulnerable time when they circled the roundabout of a plaza of the type that was dominated by civilian press in the daytime but was usually almost completely empty on weekday nights.

Somebody stationed in a skyscraper along the route fired a Grenadier's Sniper Rifle. The weapon spat out a miniaturized proton bomb that obliterated the Mech that was supporting the column from the front. The war machine lost an arm to the conflagration that engulfed it because the 'smart' circuitry in the bullet managed to bypass its shields completely and it was as if they did not exist. The energized flames ate into the delicate area where the engine was housed.

Volatile reactions clashed with contained ones and there was a calamitous explosion which sent shards of Mech and concrete everywhere. The resulting boom scattered the convoy utterly and Sasuke marked one vehicle that was destroyed by an iron pike of scrap that pierced its torso and sent it keeling over using the physics of its own motion.

"Argh!" / "What was that! An explosion?" / "Graahgh!" the diplomats began to panic. They were not alone in this. Outside those few luckless souls who had attended the plaza also began to screech as they fled the scene on quaking and flailing limbs while the few civilian vehicles there were either came to confused and screeching halts, or high tailed it out of the area without regard for normal driving rules at all.

The surviving drivers were well trained but the sudden attack shook them. There was a moment of confusion before the convoy regained its equilibrium and they stopped swerving unnecessarily. Thankfully the panicked cries of most of his passenger's seemed to steady the hand of Sasuke's driver and they exchanged measured looks.

His Sharingan blazed and he was sure there were other Jedi in the delegation that held confidence in their abilities. He reached for the Force, and as he did so Sasuke hastened to unbuckle his seatbelt.

There was another explosion. The convoy had made its way out of the wide killing plaza in a mad dash but the ambush was well planned and there were more attackers obstructing the path.

A madman emerged strapped to the nines with explosive material and the lead driver had no warning before the suicidal Shinobi dropped from his perch from a ledge designed to furrow rainwater off the dense network of constructed buildings, and timed his jump to land squarely on his windshield. The accurate assault dented the durasteel but the resultant detonation rendered this petty act of no consequence as it gutted the vehicle.

"Oh my god," the same petrified and white bearded diplomat said. There were only four vehicles left and at least four Jedi had died in the attacks so far. Perversely Sasuke wished it was any four excepting Sakura and Hinata.

Thankfully thee wail of sirens came to them all then as they zoomed through the empty streets and cut off more of his distracting warbling.

Sasuke did not quite know the layout of the city, it was one thing studying schematics and something else actually breathing the environment, but he guessed that they were closing on the relative safety of building that had been designated for their use.

As his car maneuvered past the wreckage of the slain embassy vehicle he wondered whether the sirens were calling for help against them or for them.

The first attacks had come from above but those that accompanied it originated from the bowels of the earth. The birthing battle was illuminated by the large hanging grape fruit shapes of the streetlights that guided night traffic, and the tree like posts cast a ghastly air of the running battle.

The first attacks had come from above but those that accompanied it originated from the bowels of the earth. Not literally, but as they passed an innocent looking garage – the type that serviced Speeders and bike variants something disturbing happened. Just when they began to breath easy and had driven unmolested for about five minutes – just when they thought they were in the clear the third act commenced.

Sasuke watched as sole headlights came on and engines revved. Unlike the silent repulse lifts that helped them flee the enemy that was coming was coming armed with the rapid and destructive combustion of chemical engines, and the noise made was enough to let everyone know it.

The guiding beams resolved into two packs of Speeder-bikes that throttled out of the garage and set off in hot pursuit behind what was left of the convoy.

The sole Mech escort remaining was caught by surprise. While his comrade had been annihilated from above he was taken from the back. Not only had the pilot not expected the sudden egress of the pursuing hounds, but he did not expect them to be armed.

As they bit at him with medium laser cannon that had been grafted on he tried to respond. It took precious seconds for him to bring his Mech's torso round so that the chest laser emplacements and anti-personnel multi-cannon could come to bear but they whittled at his shield in the mean –time.

The pilot managed one resounding volley and let loose with his lasers.

He mistimed the laser burst and it ate through nothing but the durasteel mass of the building alongside the route his targeted enemy took. From this distance Sasuke could make out the fact that some of the Speeder-bikes carried two occupants, and he did not doubt that the passengers were Shinobi.

However the burst of anti-personnel pellets took out three of their assailants. This was to be the Mech's last action. It limped as the packs zoomed past pouring their concentrated fire into its legs. The pilot ejected before his vehicle was brought to his knees and long before the last of the hurtling Speeder-bikes had buzzed past.

"Whatever you do don't stop for anything. Don't slow down, and make sure you get us to the hotel," Sasuke commanded his driver as the enemy approached. The man nodded tersely. He already had a white knuckled grip on his controls and his eyes darted around anxiously as if he possessed the same Sharingan that Sasuke owned.

A rapid manipulation had his viewport rolled down. The three diplomats with him were still stricken with terror. Their voices had gone hoarse from their incessant screaming and they panted for air as they clutched at each other to counter the gyrations of their Speeder's evasive maneuvers.

Sasuke squirmed out and the wind generated by their passage whipped the cloth of his protective gear and made a mess of his hair. He scrambled for the roof and clutched at the vehicle with a telekinetic grip. As he gained his feet on the roof he achieved a panoramic view of proceedings.

When Jedi are panicked or in battle they often influence each other via stray thoughts that their potent intellects pick up, and at time they react as one. Even as he planted his feet lightly, held the vehicle with his mind tightly, and unsheathed his blades Sasuke saw his fellow Jedi do the same as they clambered out of viewports to defend their transports.

Sasuke had his blue dueling blade in hand but it was unlit. The green length of his guard shoto sprang in reverse with the point moving past his elbow and he twirled it to his fore in the instant before the assassins closed in fully. He used it to deflect the beams the cannon attached to the bikes sent at his Speeder and his fellows did the same.

The night was alight with dancing shadows as the Jedi moved smoothly on their precarious platforms and sent the scorching beams screaming back at their attackers and to gouge deep holes in face of the housing that raced along their tumbling flight. The roads ahead had been cleared as by this time news of events were beginning to filter through and the planetary authorities were rising from their slumber.

As quickly as they fled bikes were faster. Soon enough the enemies were amongst them like wolves, but the drivers learnt the error of their ways and the cannons had already cooled. Four of their number had already been burned from the pursuit by their own rays as efficient Jedi reflected the bursts back, and the two packs were forced to merge into one for the final attempt. There were of them six of them left all carrying Shinobi.

Sasuke readied himself as the first of them gained his vehicle. The bike driver peeled off after dropping his load and Sasuke saw that the others did the same. They were leaving the attacking Shinobi behind. This was really to be an all or nothing affair.

He experienced a slight moment of shock as he narrowly ducked aside from the Kunai the warrior sent at him. He had been expecting and anticipating a traditional throwing motion but the man simply raised his left arm and some kind of launcher sent the projectiles at him.

As they flew by Sasuke's sharp Sharingan took in the fact that they were below standard size. He could not afford to think on this too much however because the man was coming in. Sasuke's grip was sure due to his innate Jedi abilities but the man's was surer. The fighter bounced forward as if his feet were glued to the speeding transport and his fingers snaked together. The next thing Sasuke knew the man waved his hand at him as if he were a magician flourishing a cape and at least nine shards of Elemental Lightning energy streaked at him.

_Fuck! _

He ducked to the side erasing two of them with his guard shoto. He nearly lost his psychic grip on the vehicle as his body slung down to hang off perpendicularly on the back side door but he whipped himself around and gained position behind the nin.

His blue blade came alive and met the modern vibro-sword the man possessed. From his vantage he could see over the man's shoulder to the vehicle ahead and beheld that spectacle for an instant.

Hinata guarded it alone and in the brief instant he had watching she sent one attacker to smash his flailing head against the road with a surging and powerful upper-kick, and then executed a swift roll that took her to the head of the vehicle. Sasuke could only take note of how she whirled around to defend herself from the other encroacher before pragmatism dragged him back to his own fray.

His Lightsaber quickly ate through whatever chakra technique the man was using to shield his weapon – whoever they were they were prepared – and sheered through blade. The man adroitly produced another shorter one that was strapped to the small of his back and gamely dueled on. They engaged in a strange and intimate dance as the man sent one leg darting forward in a thrust and Sasuke leaned to the side or back in a parry or thrust. Occasionally their heaving muscles strived against each other for precious seconds as their blades became locked before one disengaged to find greater tactical advantage.

Sasuke gained the upper hand for an instant and pushed inside the man's guard. His Lightsaber worked around the man's grip reaching for his fingers and Sasuke took pleasure in the widened and surprised eyes that quested for his as the skilled assassin let go of the weapon to save himself, but he did not take pleasure in the well timed punch that showed him that he had overreached and brought blood spurting from his mouth.

They both stumbled back. This time it was the other who seemed to almost loose his footing. He employed whatever technique he was using to remain instinctively but the wind generated by their passage was almost irresistible.

Sasuke deactivated his guard shoto and brought his dueling saber into a double handed grip. He took a deep breath fixing the man's image in his mind.

Dark shrouding clothes accompanying a half mask that covered the bottom of his face and an unmarked Forehead protector whose only defining characteristic was that it was glossed out in black paint. They rushed each other at the same moment and in silence. Death was the only possible outcome.


	16. Chapter 16: The Bridge

Stars in my hands like grains of sand

Disclaimer: I do not own, or profit from Naruto or Star Wars and all associated media.

A/N

"…"

- Darklighter

"_Thoughts"_

"Speech"

"_Abnormal sentient thoughts"_

"Abnormal sentient speech"

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 16<strong>

It was funny. Despite everything that had happened the night before it was completely hilarious that Sasuke recognized the blond instantly. It was an insane kind of mirth, and he knew that he was cracking, but Sasuke couldn't help himself.

The first look they had shared was identical to the last that he remembered. That last look that he remembered from when he was a kid and Uzumaki Naruto was just a non-entity. That last look by the river when he and the other had shared a side-long glance full of rivalry and recognition. Things were different now though…

Now they were no longer on the same side.

The meeting room was spacious and well appointed. Last night had been a disaster. Some of the words being spewed would turn it into an interstellar crisis if care was not taken.

"If you would deign to give pause to thought you would see," Osvaldus the openly Sith Lord purred in a smirking way, "That the council had no involvement in last night's ghastly incident which no doubt emanated from realms beyond our purvey."

To Sasuke the man was just droning at this point. There were larger issues on his mind, for example the lack of a single Kage in sight. After last night's battle that in itself was a message, but it was one that the Jedi Knight couldn't quite decipher.

Were they absent because they were complicit in the assault? Or were they saying – 'here deal with your most hated enemy – lets see how your Jedi cool works then,'

Whatever the intention – the latter was working. The Jedi had just lost friends and compatriots and grief had already frayed their nerves. They had known that Osvaldus was on planet. They had been drawn like filings to a lodestone by the Sith Lord's presence. Everything else was just a pretext as far as the wider order was concerned. \

But to figure that he had the authority to speak on behalf of Sasuke's planet's ruling body? Not a single one of the Jedi Knights in system had dared to believe that his tendrils sank so deep, and after last night's events it was no wonder that they all unconsciously fingered Osvaldus as the responsible party. The spacious room was rendered claustrophobic with tension.

"Nonetheless it was your Council that granted the core leave to establish an embassy here – with the Jedi Order at its head," Pav Qeral stated calmly.

Against all the odds in the universe she had survived the conflagration that had consumed her Speeder. Although she would bare the scars of her ordeal in the flaming vehicle for the rest of her life – just as the rest of them could still see those very same scars.

"We are aware that the Council you… _**represent**_… does not speak for this whole world – we find it hard to fathom an attack of this magnitude occurring in your Council's _**Capital **_without forewarning," Mistress Qeral said.

"Are you saying that the Jedi Order is going to hold Terrra responsible for these unfortunate events?" Osvaldus inquired mildly. "Take care Mistress not to let your judgment be clouded by your own…" he leered and seemed to gain pleasure from her bandaged form, "Grievous injuries. As you have yourself noted we are your hosts, and it would not do to test our hospitality with insults."

The tension racked up – although there were only six beings in the room. The two leaders were flanked by dangerous and veteran warriors. On the Sith Lord's side of the room Sasuke had already noted Naruto. Tall and looking older that he should have been Uzumaki stood next to a girl of average height who had red hair and wore glasses.

Not for the first time since returning to his home planet Sasuke marveled at how different their lives had turned out. Although he had already gathered that Uzumaki Naruto had become something of a celebrity on Terra he could not help but note how stark the contrast in their upbringing in the stars was.

He could see that it unsettled Hinata. It seemd as if she could look nowhere but at the blue eyed nin, and Sasuke saw pity, disbelief, and apprehension in the silvery pools of her eyes.

Mistress Pav Qeral was a Jedi ideal. No matter what Osvaldus, the Sith Lord, said it seemed he could not unsettle her, and there was no way that he could divert her from her path.

"What I am saying is simple. Unless we are allowed to conduct our own investigations concerning this matter – and given leave to call those ultimately responsible to task – then we will leave with the medical schematics that the Core has seen fit to trade in good faith," Pav Qeral said.

Out of the three of them no one had accepted the seats or refreshments offered. Her final words may as well have been a motion to stand up because all three Jedi in the room made to leave simultaneously.

"Relay my message to your _**Masters**_," Pav rounded off with a smile. To Sasuke's surprise Naruto burst out into loud laughter – unsettling the red head with spectacles and drawing an angry frown from Osvaldus. There was nothing a Sith Lord hated more than any inference that his own strings were not his to pull.

As Sasuke followed Mistress Pav and reluctant Hinata out of the meeting place he convinced himself that he imagined more than felt Naruto's piercing cold cobalt eyes painting a target on his back.

The meeting had taken place in the heart of the city's diplomatic quarters and the interior that had shelled their deliberation had been cool and air conditioned.

Outside the sun was boiling. It illuminated the broad boulevards and leafy avenues that linked expansive manses which were all surrounded by chain link fences and barbed wire. The launch pad their shuttle rested on stood out like the sorest of thumbs. The durasteel construction stood at odds with the wood and paper screen architecture all around that Sasuke remembered from his youth.

"Will the Core allow you to withhold the schematics?" Hinata asked. There was no challenge in her tone. The time for that was past.

"I hope it doesn't come to that," Pav said. "But I'll open a dialogue with Othelius. Thankfully he survived."

Othelius stood at the head of the diplomats who had accompanied the Jedi. He was one of the gibbering wrecks who had been in Sasuke's Speeder.

"He'll come around if it comes to it," Sasuke said wryly and cryptically – drawing glances from the other two.

"I pray it doesn't come to that," Qeral sighed. She adjusted her robe with a slight flick, but she could not conceal the bacta-bandages that reached up to her elbows and concealed half of her beautiful oval face. Sasuke knew that more lurked beneath the soft amber material she wore.

"The Order… and the Core cannot afford to appear weak." Pav continued. "Not with the Chiss already on this world. Not to mention the re-emergence of the Sith. Normally we would counter malice with light… but the people of this world…" The Jedi Mistress grasped for words.

"My people respect strength," Hinata said firmly.

Although last night's events had left her wings sorrowful and clipped in the end she had been proved right. Mistress Pav simply nodded.

"The worst move is inaction," Sasuke agreed as the three of them finally entered the safe confines of their shuttle.

There was temporary darkness as the shuttle's cleansing unit sprayed all three of them with a mist that would eradicate any and all Terran germs and vectors… encapsulated in that inky darkness images of the hours before flashed to Sasuke's mind as his eyes closed against the spray..

The terror afterwards when he had witnessed Pav Qeral's burns first hand and the corpses of the slain Knights and Diplomats.

The flashing amber lights of medical speeders and planetary forces rushing to the various scenes of carnage.

The white lit room where Sakura had tended his minor wounds caringly. They had both been in shock and delirious, but for some reason the soft pink of her lips stood out in his memory.

And finally the sick elation he had felt as he reversed the blade of his dueling saber – parallel to the ground - and with full force punched it deep into the throat cavity of the unnamed Shinobi he had dueled.

The smell of cauterized flesh came to him then, but it this was not a memory of the slain enemy. Rather the lights were blinking on and it was just the after odor of the cleansing agents that had just scoured their forms. Sasuke followed Mistress Pav and Hinata through on leaden steps.

* * *

><p>There was something hard in Naruto's eyes as he watched Sasuke, HInata, and their Jedi companions depart. Seeing the two of them together like that aroused something deep inside. Feelings he thought had had purged that came way back from his lonesome days in Konoha's Shinobi academy.<p>

But now he was a Captain. He had almost snorted when he had seen the soft 'combat' uniforms the three Jedi wore, and he did so now, but his ironic mirth was aimed at his own weakness.

"What's so funny?" Osvaldus barked – still smarting from Qeral's parting barb. Sith could be so self absorbed.

"Your face," Naruto responded casually, but every fiber of his being literally _**begged **_the further incensed Sith Lord to try something. Not only had he been promoted, but he was no longer under Osvaldus's chain of command. His feud with the Zabrak had not gone undetected, and the Kages who sat in Council were no fools. Osvaldus was useful… but they would never trust him.

However although the Zabrak Sith Sorcerer was not trustworthy he was far from stupid. The raging angry mist only clouded his face for a fraction before his etched features drew pensive.

"That meeting didn't go as well as I had planned. I had thought that they would be far more off kilter and unreasonable," he said instead.

"But… perhaps some on the Council foresaw this result," he said with a private smile and steeped fingers.

"What do you mean," Karin demanded - reflecting some of Naruto's hostility. "The Council foresaw your unwise attack on the Jedi? Or foresaw their reaction?"

"Their reaction," Naruto said as he grasped Osvaldus's train of thought, "and Osvaldus didn't order the hit on the Jedi convoy," he added.

"Oh?" the Zabrak demanded with arched eyebrows.

"Yeah…" Karin finally saw it, and she blanked out the Sith Lord. "This isn't his style. He's too cowardly."

Instead of getting angry Osvaldus seemed to purr with pleasure. "Yes," he said. "It's obvious. We will let the Jedi perform their investigation only on the condition that the two of you take part as Terra's representatives," he concluding.

Despite the contempt in which he held the Sith Lord Naruto found himself in automatic agreement. As he nodded he said: "We'll use this chance to find out what the Core is really after. I'm certain their not here just to give us tech, and if this is a play against the Chiss…" he paused and his hard eyes seemed to become iron. "I won't let my world become a battlefield," he concluded. Seeing Sasuke and Hinata had infused his being with a certain motivating intensity.

"I already know what they want," Osvaldus snapped – drawing a glare from Karin who was over protective wherever her 'Captain' was concerned. "They would see the two of us dead… and the Sith Order extinct," he would have sighed, but the Zabrak was not capable of such an action. "That's what the Jedi always want," he said.

"Speak for yourself," Naruto replied. The young Captain stood up abruptly. Looming over the Sith Sorcerer just so it was obvious why Osvaldus had declined to rise to he and Karin's verbal bait.

"No Jedi will see me dead," Naruto locked his cobalt eyes on the Zabrak's sickly yellow.

"And I'm not Sith," he said with finality.

"Really?" Osvaldus demanded. Fear wormed its way into his gut.

"What are you then?"

Karin had risen with Naruto, and over time she had come to gain an intricate understanding of the blond.

"Idiot," she stated as they strode out – leaving Osvaldus to his solitude.

"He's a Shinobi."

Later when they were out of earshot Karin turned her face towards his, and Naruto knew that she wanted to say something.

"So what's the next step?" she asked. "I know Osvaldus isn't on our side but it won't do to annoy him unduly now that the Council has decreed that we work with him." She herself was preening Naruto noted as they walked together. While he had been made a Captain she could now call herself lieutenant.

"Say's the Shinobi who called him an idiot," he smirked. Naruto was distracted by recent events but his eyes were still sharp. Constantly he scanned their perimeter and the boulevard for incoming threats. He couldn't help it.

"I was just following your lead," came the retort. "Besides he was practically begging for it," now a wry smile graced her light purple lips.

They had come to a halt before the mass transit center. There were designated vehicles inside that would take them from the Diplomatic quarters and back to the Shinobi encampments that ringed the city like some sort of great wall.

Naruto blacked out from the conversation. It wasn't surprising considering that within forty-eight hours he had reconnected with his lost heritage, been promoted, and was now assigned the most unorthodox mission of his career. Despite Karin's groaning when the bus came he boarded in silence, and when he nodded off Karin let him rest his head on the petite shoulder that edged him.

* * *

><p>Sakura waited apprehensively for Sasuke and Hinata to return. Everybody aboard the ship was still tense. They had all heard what had happened. Even the techs and orderlies were aware. Nobody could remember the last time that so many Jedi had died on a first time diplomatic mission. There were rumors though, but none of them were good.<p>

To her mind yesterday's events were precedent, but she was far from idle as she waited for her compatriots to return from the terrifying and dangerous surface. On the one hand she grieved for the knights who had died. Knights she had not known… had not taken the time to know.

On the other she worked diligently. The ambush had not only produced fatalities. There were a plethora of burns to treat. Burns sustained by Jedi and diplomats alike – and any number of psychological profiles to build on those that had managed to survive.

It was such a slog that despite her eagerness to hear from her compatriots it was a full five hours before Sasuke ambled into the infirmary, and she had been so distracted that she was not among the party that had gone to meet them.

She was rounding up at a terminal when her partner from Coruscant's underbelly showed up. Although she was meek an average in most things healing was her forte. She was so engrossed in the data gathered from her patients that almost ten minutes flew by before she noticed a lanky clump of his midnight hair hanging over her shoulder, and gently brushing up against her clavicle.

"How's it going?" he asked sincerely as she started.

"F-fine," she responded. "I'm almost done, and thankfully we didn't lose anybody to injury," she said.

"Good," he said – straightening up now that he had her attention. She leaned back and looked up to meet his gaze. "I'm glad," he said simply, and there was a silence, but it wasn't awkward.

"Did you know any of the Knights who passed?" she asked finally. She did not know what else to say.

Sasuke shrugged by way of response. "One… the wookie – Baccaktchewa," he admitted.

"I'm sorry," Sakura said. The emotion was heartfelt but it simply drew another shrug from her champion companion. However he laid a hand on her shoulder.

In the past such an action on his part would have had her devolving into squeals, but it seemed that the Order had changed the both of them for the better.

"It's ok," Sasuke said. Death is in the job description."

They pondered this for a while before he added the most poignant afterthought.

"I saw him," he said.

"Who?"

Uzumaki Naruto," he answered. The answer was more than a name. There was regret and something fierce there.

"Oh…" Sakura exhaled deeply closing her eyes. Almost unconsciously her hand came up to clasp his – which still rested on her shoulder. Sasuke's grip on her body tightened.

"What was he like?" she asked – remembering how the boy had been as infatuated with her as she with Sasuke.

"Sith," Sasuke responded. His tone was simple, but it was also fearful.

"Oh…" Sakura said.

* * *

><p><strong>AN**

This is a bridge. The next chapter will be of the usual average length.


	17. Chapter 17: And Yet Another Desert

**SHGS - Chapter Seventeen: And Yet Another Desert**

Disclaimer: I do not own, or profit, from Naruto, Star Wars, and all associated media.

**A/N**

"…"

- Darklighter

"_Thoughts"_

"Speech"

**"_Abnormal sentient thoughts"_**

**"Abnormal sentient speech"**

* * *

><p>The true negotiations had taken place a fortnight ago and a decision had been reached. The decision had been reached but there had been an endless array of petty snags and accusations that had gotten in the way of action. For example the Council had sought to leverage the abduction of Naruto's classmates, but in the end it seemed as if everyone would get what they wanted. The Jedi no longer threatened to withhold their tech gift from the Terrans, and the carte blanche they had been given to pursue their investigation was a near precedent.<p>

Now Naruto felt like little more than a glorified and sentient game piece. Some of his moves were of his own devising, sure, but there were so many factions – seen and unseen – with an interest in his new assignment that the strings on his person practically glowed. On Terra plots had a way of spiraling out of control. The natives couldn't help themselves and someone's death was always the inevitable result…

Naruto sighed. If his head had not been covered by the cool metal of the Aventis's guidance helm he would have curled his fingers through his hair in frustration. His troops were not on board. Konohamaru, Karin, Haku, and Zabuza were his only companions. Haku and Zabuza were not part of the new company that he was yet to form, Sarutobi Asuma held the two in the highest regard, but Naruto had managed to wheedle them out of the grizzled tactician for his present purposes.

"War Yacht Aventis. This is Flagship Control. Adjust your approach vector 33.2 degrees Starboard. Copy?"

"We hear you," Naruto muttered, and the Aventis relayed his muted words to the Flagship's communications people.

In an emergency Naruto's War-Yacht could dock with a much larger vessel in less than two minutes. However this wasn't an emergency and there was nothing that defined the Core Military more than procedure… They spent a full thirty minutes in the vapid and freezing void before the reassuring clamp of his ship's docking arrays came to his ears.

"Finally," he sighed as he took of his helmet. As always there was a slight narcotic induced sense of vertigo and loss. Just as the Aventis was now addicted to his brainwaves it used bio chemistry to ensure that he was almost as equally tied to it.

Naruto snorted as the sensations quickly cleared under assault from the iron will he had fashioned in his pursuit for power. What kind of idiot would he have to be to even think of abandoning the vessel? Drugs or no drugs theirs was a bond till death.

However the vertigo severance caused had nothing to do with the drug cocktail the Aventis spoon-fed him when he was hacked into its mind scape. The steps that took him down and away from his raised command dais were shaky and hesitant.

"Show me where the others are," Naruto commanded the empty air. His Ship complied but as always she had grown sulky. He was no longer plugged into her embrace. She illuminated a path to guide him on the floor and wall tiles, but she did not grant him the pleasure of hearing her silky voice.

"We both know you can't keep this up for long," he said provocatively, but she was determined not to rise to the bait. He held his tongue with a wry smile as he considered how childish the hyper intelligent war-machine could be when she so wished.

The others were waiting for him in the armory.

Konohamaru was still full of energy. He had enough of it to compensate for the nerves of the other, seasoned, warriors. They knew that what came next was not going to be easy. The kind of people who staged an assassination attempt at the heart of Terran power weren't the kind of people who had much to lose, and they definitely were not the kind of people that cared about loss of life. They knew that this was going to come down to killers versus killers and it showed in the atmosphere.

Konohamaru however had been hyper ever since Naruto had started repaying his Shinobic lessons in kind, and he proudly wore the training saber Naruto had given him on his waist. The young lad was smart and he possessed a giving streak. He had responded to the gift by providing Naruto with one of his own. He had bought an ornate storage scroll for the blond – white with gold and silver filigree. Naruto had abandoned his bandolier and the scroll now nestled at the small of his back. He carried his Greater disc blade inside it, and hung the smaller disc on his right thigh. His Lightsaber was strapped to the other thigh.

Although Naruto worried about bringing the youth him tagging along such a dangerous mission was not uncommon. It was an honor usually reserved for the most promising students, but Naruto was sure that they young ninja was up to the task. He saw much of himself in the boy, and he believed in the virtues of baptisms by fire.

"Man that took for ever!" we've arrived right? When are we leaving the Ship?" Konohamaru could barely contain himself. He had only been able to show a shade of his exuberant personality after the death of his grandfather, yet now that he was in essence – free – his true nature began to shine through."

"Dude I saw their ship through the view ports. It's so huge! I think it could be as big as Yugakure and Konoha combined inside!"

"Whoa… slow down," Karin called out. She had her head down at a workstation and she was fiddling with her Overlord Array, but she had a soft spot for Konohamaru. "It's not nearly that big squirt," she said.

"You're not coming with us," Naruto said harshly. He wasn't really comfortable disappointing people so when he had to do it he did it quickly and ruthlessly. "Sorry guy but this is grown up business," his tone softened slightly.

Zabuza was silent but from his slow nod it was obvious that he was in agreement. At any rate Haku spoke for the both of them.

"It's for the best," he interjected as Konohamaru began to splutter indignation. "Anyway you've already seen more than most of your former classmates will for a lifetime," he tried to mollify the boy but Konohamaru wasn't having it. He turned silent, sorrowful, and pleading eyes on his commander.

"Sorry kid," Naruto grinned uncomfortably.

"I need you hear watching over the Ship. You know I don't trust these Jedi," he said.

Later as he and the others stalked down the ramp and into the bowels of the Jedi's Flagship Naruto felt something small but heavy crash against the inside of his left thigh. Looking back sharply he was greeted by Konohamaru's grinning face. The boy was hiding behind a stack of cargo of the sort that is only actually on board to be jettisoned when some plot device calls for such. Naruto wanted to rub his leg, which was throbbing, but he decided that he didn't want to give the young Shinobi the satisfaction. After they had passed across Konohamaru accessed a small panel and the ramp rose. The Aventis went into lock down.

* * *

><p>The last time Hinata had seen Naruto he had been unarmed. Perhaps that was the reason why she had found his being Sith almost impossible to process. However in the short space since their last meeting things had changed. He was geared up in matte black form fitting body armor that was not terrestrial in origin. Although his companions were armed there was only one object that drew the eye of the Jedi in the room. They all gazed at the black and white fang that clutched at the blonde's waist. The angular weapon was not crafted with the same aesthetic values of a Jedi blade. It was utilitarian and deadly.<p>

"Why are they armed?" Hinata asked, almost petulantly. Seeing Naruto like this had upset her past her ken. Although she was speaking more to herself than to anyone else Lovett Alcatraz snorted and picked up the thread. He pointed at the view finder through which they all monitored the Terran's steady approach.

"Because there are only four of them and the way your people think… they may even believe that we have lured them here only to exact revenge on behalf of our dead," he said.

Hinata didn't respond. She didn't know if he was right, but his reason would serve as much as any.

"They are almost here," Mistress Pav stated – drawing the Jedi around her into a state of readiness. "Remember what we discussed," she addressed them as a slightly nervous shifting pattern bubbled across the room.

As the entry portal went opaque Hinata glanced over at Sasuke and Sakura seeking reassurance. They were seated together – as was their wont over the past week or so, but neither of them noticed her look. However she saw that Lovett kept shooting glances at the pair of them. Although his face appeared calm and his body language relaxed the man had been in a prickly mood which she had attributed to the attack, but perhaps her friends were the true cause. Hinata wondered what Mistress Pav would have think and do about the budding triangle.

She knew that her Mistress did not like to interpret the Codes views on romantic love too strictly. One only had to look at her off and on relationship with Sasuke's Master Jedi Orton to realize that. But unrequited love could be a powerful emotion. One that could quickly devolve into hate… But perhaps orders and strictures would only cause more harm than good.

Hinata didn't have anymore time to ponder the issue. The four Terrans made their entrance.

"Welcome to our home," Mistress Qeral said. She seemed impressed by the lanky blond that brought up the rear. Naruto had grown tall and he had the sort of aura that Pav had only seen once or twice in her lifetime serving on the wild frontier. Three distinct Force disciplines existed in conflicted harmony within his body. Beings like him were unpredictable, and they were often deadly.

"Thanks," the blond said dryly as he gently pushed to the fore of his group. "It's cold in here though. Must be all the metal," he said.

"I would also prefer heat and tranquil gardens," Pav smiled. "Actually I'm looking forward to seeing more of the natural sites that your world has to offer," she confessed.

"I thought you were only interested in finding out who killed your friends?" Naruto asked. His good cheer was replaced by hard stones which came to rest in his eyes, and his intensity gave Pav Qeral pause.

"Not only that," Hinata interjected to save her Mistress from embarrassment, but she didn't know what to follow up with. "we're here to help," she concluded lamely.

"Help with what exactly?" Naruto asked with a knowing smile and she blushed. They both knew that secretly she was referring to him.

"I don't need the help of traitors," he intoned, "And I don't think that _**my**_ planet does either."

"That's quite enough," as always Pav got her calm, yet firm voice down to a T. "What Hinata means is that as part of our role as intergalactic peacekeepers the Jedi and the Core are here primarily to ensure the smooth integration of your world into galactic society…" she paused.

"Nobody want's a repeat of your war with the Vagaari over Umaren'k," she said.

"Ah," surprisingly it was Zabuza, usually taciturn, that entered the conversation. He was leaning against one of the chamber's side buttresses, but his gravelly voice stole in to fill the whole space.

"The Chiss are already helping with our… _**integration,**_" Zabuza said with no small dose of sarcasm. Naruto knew that most Shinobi hated the external alien influences on their world almost as much as they realized the necessity that drove the foreign presence on their shores. Zabuza didn't say much, but Naruto gathered that it was this hatred that had driven him to take up the amnesty.

There was a pregnant silence.

"Perhaps we should eat before we continue this discussion," Pav said in carefully measured tones. Everyone had already gotten off to a bad start.

Luckily the smile that Naruto bequeathed on her was genuine.

"I can second that," he said. "I can definitely second that."

So within five minutes and to no obvious signal the room's portal blanked open and sentient servers tumbled in - hovering in trolleys that were laden with food. Ever the connoisseurs of intergalactic culture, and always polite the fare the Jedi served their guests was distinctively Terran in flavor and texture.

"Nice," Karin murmured appreciatively as the scents wafted into their noses. That was one thing about rising through the ranks - when and where to eat often became an afterthought and chore.

Just as Qeral intended the meal served as a sort of informal ice breaker. Although there was silence the Terrans sat across from the Jedi amicably enough.

But as they ate Pav had the time to study the lines of tension that past history had wrought. Just between the four of them there were enough cross allegiances and desires amongst the abductees to make her head spin… but those very same cross allegiances were the only hope the group had of ceasing to be two distinct camps.

"Ehrhmm," she cleared her throat politely when everybody had finished with their plates. For the moment she resisted the urge to drink water. She had heard long ago that drinking water right after eating wasn't good for the digestion.

"Now that we've eaten I would like your group's thoughts on the most likely perpetrators of last week attack," she asked.

The Captain was leaning back in his chair and breathing out of his mouth. He just finished seriously stuffing himself and his eyes held that glazed look Lions sometimes have after gorging. However appearances could be deceiving. He still held an eating utensil in his left hand so he set it down on the table slowly and gently.

"Listen lady," he said in a low urgent tone, "I don't know what you think this is, but my people and I… we aren't here to help you with your _**investigation.**_" He lazily licked a still oily finger as he held her gaze. When he was done he smacked his lips loudly. "And we're not here to take orders from you either. From what I've seen you Jedi are easy to kill, and my only job is to prevent that from happening… as far as is possible," he said.

Zabuza and Haku were already ready to leave. Haku didn't like strangers. He had put on his old white hunter-nin mask before they had left the Aventis' confines.

"I'll be on my ship with my crew," Naruto said as Karin rose and he followed suit.

"Y'all feel free to take all the time you want," he called back as they left.

"Babysitting duty doesn't start until you're on world."

* * *

><p>"Qeral! It's not that I forget the codes! Rather it seems like you forget our honor! Or let me guess. Honor is arrogance or some such crap right?" Lovett Alcatraz was fuming. It was a good thing that this was a private audience in Mistress Pav's mauve quarters. It wouldn't have done for the younger Knights to see the thirty-something year old human male so agitated.<p>

"It's only natural that they underestimate us after last week," she said evenly.

"There is more to being a Jedi than prowess at arms…" she chided him gently. "Lovett… you already know this to be true."

"Yes but the Sith!" Lovett's frantic whisper. "Am I the only one that can see their dark tongues poisoning this world against us? Am I the only one that can see that they _**must**_ be behind last week. The truth can often be found in the simplest answer," he said.

"Yes, but I'm not so sure," Qeral reasoned. "I'm not even sure if we can consider the young Captain we just met Sith. The Zabrak yes, but him? No… that one is something else," she said.

"How can you not be sure? By the Force weren't we just on the same planet? These people have more in common with the dark than the light. Surely you can feel that. The whole place _**reeks **_of it," he said with burning fervor in his eyes.

Some women called Lovett Alcatraz a handsome man but Qeral had never seen it… although her tastes were odd to say the least. There was a pit of darkness in the man that his years of service as a Jedi Knight could only contain – never eradicate.

"Sometimes," Pav said with authority – taking Alcatraz back to the time when he had just been a padawan. "We Jedi are quick to label things that we don't understand to be of the dark," she laid a hand on his shoulder. "I wouldn't want you to fall into that trap my dear friend," she sad.

Finally her words and actions seemed to have gotten through to him. He was an exemplary knight after all (passionate, but exemplary) and through her touch Pav felt his shoulders begin to heave with dry sobs.

"Just let me come with you," he finally said when he had calmed down. "Let me come down with you and the kids. I won't be at ease if I don't," he said.

"I wanted you here," Pav was not so sure. "It's bad enough that I need to take those young ones into danger… If anything happens to me you become the most senior knight on ground, and someone has to look after the others," she said.

"Nevertheless," Lovett would not be denied in this. She recognized this fact from the set of his stance and the blaze in his eyes as he looked up at her again.

"I'm coming with you."

* * *

><p><em><strong>THREE DAYS LATER<strong>_

Not for the first time Naruto marveled at the scale of change that had touched his world ever since his abduction, but now for the first time he saw the ills that modernization had wrought. After shuttling back to Yugakure, and from there to Konoha the large group had set out for the Wind Country. For some reason Mistress Pav Qeral thought that more clues concerning the attack could be found there. She had been strangely accepting of the Terran authority's denial of responsibility although she had remained adamant where this fact finding mission was concerned.

Naruto wondered how much of that acceptance was real, and how much was due to whatever ulterior motives the woman held. He felt sure that she was using the attack as a guise to make contact with the other political actors on Terra.

However if she had thought to find powerful allies in the Wind Country then she had better have another thought coming he mused. There was little to be found here amongst the ruins of a once great civilization. Qeral would have had better luck trying to seek out the elusive Samurai as far as he was concerned.

There were ten of them in all and the going was slow. The going was slow because they stuck to the dirt roads. Harsh trade restrictions meant that mechanized means of transport had not reached touched this part of the world, and before long they were forced to stop at a medium sized village in search of supplies and horses.

The village was in one of the green fingers of farmland that ringed the edge of the Wind Country's great desert. At the heart of that desert dwelt the Shinobi of the sand, and in the past they had often been forced to protect fertile plains such as the one they found themselves in from Konohaian annexation.

If there was one boon interstellar travel had brought to this bleak place it was the end of such worries. Konoha now had enough agric plantations to feed the world twice over, yet the people they found were sullen and hungry.

Their arrival brought a cluster of hopeful and rabid natives running. The odd one out of two gripped imported blaster rifles, and they had the air of people who knew how to use them. The rest of the world denied these people food and the other trappings of technology, but guns were a dime a dozen. The weapons sold like hot cakes in these lands.

Naruto pondered these things as Karin began to haggle with the natives. Her voice was a blur to him. He was disinterested, and although he didn't realize it, somewhat depressed. He caught Hinata looking at him. It seemed like that happened a lot, and he felt the sorrow there mirrored inside his own body.

Pragmatically he accepted that the Terran authority's course was a wise one. The Shinobi of the sand and their allies had become entrenched in their hatred, so their unsatisfied people were given cheap weapons to use against their overlords, and it was easy for civilians to cross over the borders and into allied lands. It was easy as long as they evaded capture. Naruto's side had the vise locked in like a boa constrictor, and it was only a matter of time. Letting go in such circumstances would be the height of folly.

Still he didn't mind when Karin overpaid for the two horses, and for the cart and supplies. He didn't mind the avarice in the harsh faces of the men and women, and he didn't mind that the cart was on its last legs, and that one of the horses looked like it didn't _**have **_legs.

He didn't mind because it was the same story all over the galaxy. It was always the stubborn and willful who suffered. It was the sentients who were unable to evolve mentally who suffered.

It would have been easy for these people to flee their ancestral homes and head for the border and the relative safety of Konoha. It would have been easy but they clung on – trusting in the fake power and reassurance of guns and money. When the Sand Shinobi truly grew desperate they would slaughter the lot of them like chickens…

"Umm… can we stop here for the night?" Sakura asked tentatively. Out of the three of them she always seemed the most embarrassed when she had to speak to or deal with him. Naruto wondered if she thought he might still be hung up over her and an unbidden memory of the mature things he and Traya had done to each other with their hands and mouths stretched leisurely into his mind. He chuckled.

"No I want to push on," he said. His tone wasn't spiteful but it seemed to rile Sasuke, and strangely enough the tall Knight Alcatraz. The pair of them must have thought that they looked intimidating in their dark cloaks but they were being ridiculous. Whatever Sakura had told them about his prior infatuation he was just being practical. Thankfully the rest of them could see that.

"The people here are famished," Hinata said simply.

A spark of irritation twanged into his breast. The Jedi had her speaking in lang-mysterious but generally she was right. That didn't mean that he had to like the way she spoke though…

Soon enough the locals would begin to wonder how much more money they had on them, and they would remember that they needed the horses and cart for the farms. Soon enough the locals would start to finger their rifles… and Naruto did not want to have to kill these people. Despite what Traya might have thought he wasn't ashamed of that.

The group moved on – camping out in the open. By this time it was evening and they had already begun to make progress into the desert. Haku had thought to bring one of the new and highly secretive portable Jutsus. He laid the scroll out on the ground and primed the seal with a smear of his own blood. The metal quickly absorbed the liquid and he cut another finger and swiped again.

The second dab of blood activated the Jutsu which followed certain parameters. The Jutsu would take the nearest natural resource and use it to create concealment and shelter. It could work with anything from sand to wood, and Naruto marveled as pillars of sand sprouted into cascading rigidity – interlocking and forming igloos that would protect them all from the desert chill.

"I only have two more," Haku stated softly, but the shy Shinobi seemed to bask in their appreciation.

"You're people are incredible," Mistress Pav Qeral breathed sincerely. There was wonder shining in her eyes. Even Lovett seemed touched, and for an instant he broke out of his stern demeanor and into a relaxed smile.

"That's so rad! Kami where did you get that!" Konohamaru exclaimed with joy as he rushed into the nearest igloo.

_Thank Kami he can still act like a kid, _Naruto mused as he followed the youth. Konohamaru had gotten his wish, and Naruto had brought him along, but the journey was beginning to take its toll on the youth. So were the nightly tutoring sessions that he shared with the blonde.

Already the new training saber he wore proudly had stopped being so nice as he got to the weird physics of the weapon, and the stinging burns that Naruto's harsh training left on his body. Konohamaru still couldn't consistently touch the Force that Naruto spoke of – although he had grasped it fleetingly.

As for Naruto… well the blonde seemed to struggle with something as he tried to teach the teenager. He was a man who didn't know what dark secrets to share, and which to withhold, for the last thing he wanted was the destruction of his apprentice, and he no longer held absolute faith in the Sith way.

However Naruto also did not know anything about the light and it was hard going for the both of them. Thankfully after they had begun to travel with the Jedi the lessons had ceased. Although Konhamaru still had the tedious task of brushing up on the academy lessons that he had spent the past few years diligently skipping.

Naruto had also diligently skipped those lessons, and missed many due to his abduction, but he was not about to do the reading himself. It was just one of the prices Konohamaru had to pay, for in some respects he was the Master and Naruto the student.

Zabuza and Haku claimed an igloo for themselves and the others began to settle down as well. Haku had declined to answer Konohamaru's unwitting question. Now that the two had retired nobody would disturb their solitude.

"Haku got it from a quarter-master he knows on Yugakure," Naruto gave Konohamaru a leering smile. "Zabuza doesn't really care for their… relationship, but I guess he accepts it. Haku didn't mean to be rude. He just doesn't want to rub it into Zabuza's face," he said.

"W-What?"Konohamaru blurted as he blushed and turned. "What exactly are you saying?"

"You mean you didn't know?" Naruto looked incredulous. "For someone as fond as transforming into women as you are that's quite surprising," he added unhelpfully.

Konohamaru still looked like he didn't understand.

"They're gay…" Naruto finally sighed.

"They're gay!" Konohamaru shouted without restraint. The whole camp heard him and an ominous hush descended rapidly. Naruto cringed – taken aback.

"Not so loud!" he whispered unnecessarily – the damage had already been done – eyes frantic.

"Kami d'you know what you've done?" he demanded. He shivered and seemed to look around in fear.

"You've brought doom down upon us all," he stated, and there was such a look of abject despair on his face that Konohamaru began to wonder.

"I'm leaving before it's too late," Naruto said – springing into his bedroll. "Save yourself before it's too late,"

And then he was out. Before Konohamaru could begin to piece all his dire predictions together he was asleep and snoring loudly.

Later that night however he understood. Later that night when all was still and Zabuza and Haku got their revenge. Since Konohamaru had abandoned discretion they ran away from the concept entirely and flagrantly.

They might even have gone so far as to use Jutsu to accentuate their cries. Konohamaru wasn't sure and he didn't care. That long night scarred the precious young nin, and the marks that were left behind would not heal for the rest of his life.

* * *

><p><strong>AN**

Next chapter will be combat centric and probably about two thousand words longer. However I won't be able to update for about three weeks after that. Just sayin.


	18. Chapter 18: Oh Brother Mine

**SHGS - Chapter Eighteen: Oh Brother Mine**

Disclaimer: I do not own, or profit, from Naruto, Star Wars, and all associated media.

A/N

"…"

- Darklighter

"_Thoughts"_

"Speech"

**"_Abnormal sentient thoughts"_**

**"Abnormal sentient speech"**

* * *

><p>Naruto started the day in an extraordinarily good mood. He had only needed to take one look at Konohamaru – shivering from sleep deprivation and nervously sucking on one thumb, and he found the day's satisfaction.<p>

Naruto left the boy to sleep and exited naked to perform his 'dry' morning absolutions. He was greeted by the rising sun, and also by Hinata and Mistress Qeral – both already ready for the day.

"Oh hai yo!" he called out to them jovially as he emerged from his igloo. Even their inane Jedi sayings wouldn't have been able to ruin his mood this morning.

"O – o – oh – oh hai…" Hinata couldn't reply. Blushing furiously she covered her eyes with her hands… but Naruto thought he could make out the silvery veins of her active Byakugan.

"O – Oy!" Naruto exclaimed as he hurriedly tried to cover himself with his hands. For a minute he had forgotten that he was not in camp amongst his familiar soldiery, and Mistress Pav broke out into peals of laughter. Naruto would have found her to be exquisitely gorgeous in that moment had he not been the object of her mirth.

"That's quite the package you have there," Qeral said sincerely. Hinata squealed and looked as if she wanted the ground to swallow her whole.

"What's going on?" Konohamaru asked as he clambered out of the igloo he shared with Naruto bleary eyed.

"Naruto? OH KAMI! WHAT IS THAT THING!"

"Shut up!" Naruto screamed. He'd never been so mortified in his entire life, and he knew that the rest of camp had surely been awoken by the commotion. He made a mad dash, and he and his three legs dived for his igloo.

"Just shut up!" he yelled.

Afterwards the going was cheerful – even though quite a few members of the party still maintained tinges of embarrassment.

Mistress Pav seemed immensely happy. Her tag team combo with the desert – excruciating heat coupled with draining conversation – was the ultimate ice breaker. The two groups unknowingly intermingled into one as they quested to avoid her good cheer.

The desert was a vast expanse. It was not as omnipresent as Tatooine, but it was more intense for all its restricted size. There was no escape from the sun, and they could not see far into the distance. Although to be fair they did not have a given destination.

Perversely Naruto allowed Qeral to lead the way, and she was game enough – almost dragging the reluctant horses and cart in her wake with sheer force of will.

Wanted to go hunting for assassins in the _**desert**_ did they? Their present suffering served them all right enough.

The endless plodding went on for hours, and if not for Karin they would have been obliterated without warning.

"What's that?" she asked - innocently enough at first, but then. "Oh fuck…"

Naruto was on instant high alert. "Oh fuck," was _**Traitor**_ code for something bad - something really bad incoming. "Oh fuck what?" he demanded. Both of his discs were already out.

The pop of his defensive disc blazing into existence and a lazy orbit around his personal perimeter sent Sasuke besides him skittering away to the side with a string of un-Jedi like curses. Naruto gripped his fighting disc in his left hand although he still kept his Lightsaber in reserve.

"What's fucking coming Karin?" the urgency in his voice increased. The others had caught on and they were starting to respond. The Jedi crouched down and levitated unlit blades to hand. Zabuza and Haku stood to the side conferring softly. The taller Shinobi had already unlimbered his decapitation sword, and his petite companion burst into a blaze of hand signs.

"Up there," Karin finally pointed out a rapidly approaching blip. "Its not a craft," she said. Her Overlord Array was alive with color and chakra. Wearing it she looked like some sort of tribal high priestess.

"What is that," Naruto murmured as he squinted against the sun and at the object. "Haku where's my cover?" he snapped. The rapid dot was growing larger. Now it had almost evolved to look like three splashes of ink.

"There's not enough condensation," Haku supplied – sighing and giving up on his sealing. He went on to arm each hand with five razor thin senbon needles.

"Three more massive signatures approaching on foot," Karin interjected. The first traces of panic entered her voice. "Huge killing intents… east, west, and south already locked in," she stated.

Naruto's mind was awhirl.

"What's going on?" Sakura had stolen up on him and was clutching at his shoulder.

_For Kami's sake! _

His defensive disc almost claimed her head…

"Don't breach my perimeter like that again," Naruto ground out the words.

"We're under attack," Mistress Pav was there suddenly. Her voice had a way of calming those under her charge. "I believe this is your area of expertise Uzumaki?" her eyes were also on the approaching shape. It ate up the horizon, and now it was close enough that they could all make out the figure of a sort of giant bird. There was the shadow of a single individual standing on its head.

"You knew this would happen didn't you?" Naruto breathed as it suddenly dawned on him. "The ten of us gamboling about on planet like this… you've used yourself as bait… you've used _**me **_as bait!"

"Yes," Qeral answered honestly, but her voice was stern. "I had no other valid options. If we are actually to accomplish anything here then we cannot spend our time constantly looking over our shoulders…" she said. From the way she looked at him it was like she fervently needed him to agree with her.

"Besides," she gave him a weak smile. "Perhaps we Jedi are not as cowardly as this whole planet seems to believe we are," she said.

Looking at her standing as she was – still bearing trace evidence of her Speeder crash Naruto could hardly bring himself to disagree with her, nor could he bring himself to pursue the matter further.

"I guess you're not," he said instead and turned his attention elsewhere.

"Haku," Naruto commanded. "Give those portables to Konohamaru. Karin… Go with the boy. Find cover and call it out for me. We'll trace your signal when it's all over. Oh yeah… take pinkie with you," he said.

"W-What?" Sakura was still standing close to him. A stiff wind started up and began to blow sand all about. Sasuke and Lovett had both edged closer, and both men had looked relieved at his words.

Naruto looked away from all three of them impatiently. Hinata was engaged in a hushed conference with her mentor.

"I need to stay here," Sakura demanded… giving herself away a bit by glancing at Sasuke.

"If there's going to be a fight then I need to be here to heal… to support the rest of you," she drew herself up and the sudden strength in her stance took Naruto by surprise.

"I can protect myself," Sakura said.

"Two minutes to contact," Karin said loudly – pushing her helmed form in betwixt the two of them. "Listen lady, I'll take the time to resent you for the implication that _**I **_can't protect myself later. Right now we need to leave. I wasn't joking when I said huge killing intents," she grabbed Sakura forcefully by the upper arm.

"But!"

"But fuck you!" Karin was relentless as she began to march Sakura away. Naruto wasn't surprised by the relieved visages Sasuke and Lovett bore.

"Have you forgotten there's a kid to think about?" Karin demanded. "the group needs a fall back position," she said.

Sakura didn't answer, but although she glanced back again at Sasuke she went with Karin willingly, and the girl with the Overlord Array was able to loosen her grip.

To his credit Konohamaru wasn't shaking too badly. Naruto was proud of his apprentice. The boy hadn't put up any blustering protestations that he could stand and fight. The boy realized that his Master judged the risk of this impending conflict much too great, and he had a healthy appreciation of his own fear and mortality. All four approaching signatures were close now, and they could feel the heavy weights of their chakras bearing down on them.

Instead Konohamaru followed orders and collected the portables from Haku. Then he cut loose the horses. They had been neighing with their eyes wide and rolling in fear. Once free they bounded off into the dry desert raising clouds of dust as they galloped away on nervous legs. When he was done he set off on his own after Sakura and Karin.

Meanwhile Zabuza and Haku drew back into a defensive position behind Naruto. Sasuke and Lovett covered his right side while Hinata and her former Mistress took the other. For the first time Naruto remarked that he hadn't thought to worry about the petite dark haired girl.

_She doesn't exude confidence… she personifies it._

He blinked away the thought which had filled him with a strange elation. He watched the three he had sent away make good their escape northwards… They were in the clear.

"That bird's getting awfully close," Sasuke remarked dryly. Both of the raven haired youth's blades came on with a snap and hiss. One was green whilst the other blue and the secondary blade's design differed wildly from the primary.

"Nice," Naruto murmured in appreciation… He considered himself to be something of a violence connoisseur.

"Seriously that bird… we need to do something about it. Get in the first strike," Sasuke said.

"I thought you Jedi were all about defense," Naruto asked, but he turned to the target. His great defensive disc stopped its erratic arcs around his form and tumbled down to rest in his right fist. The other three attackers were visible now. They could track them from the large columns of dust their Speeders raised. They all wore billowing black capes and they covered the distance rapidly. Naruto thought that he could see red clouds painstakingly stitched into those capes.

"I've got it," he said. Sasuke was about to ask about the bird again. Something about the other three approaching caused his blood to run to ice. This wasn't a game anymore, and it definitely wasn't a joke.

"One bird coming down," he began to spin and for the first time he tried pumping chakra into the defensive disc…

He barely managed to hold on to the power. The ancient blade screamed at the cold touch of the foreign essence. The normally protective weapon urged him to release it. Urged him to rip – urged Naruto to kill.

Naruto did so – hurling it with a guttural cry and the posture of a champion thrower. The disc shot out from his hand eagerly – breaking the sound barrier almost immediately with a deafening clap that was painted by Naruto's flaring blue chakras.

The approaching bird was massive, and now close enough that they could tell that it was formed out of some sort of clay. The Shinobi that rode on its head had his blonde hair pulled back into a streaming ponytail. Laughing maniacally he had begun to dive bomb at them before Naruto's throw, but he took one look at the lance of destruction that exploded out of Naruto's grasp and abandoned ship.

The man with ponytail tumbled through the air with wide eyes. He was still high up enough that impact with the ground would probably kill him, but his relief was still palatable as Naruto's disc made contact with his construction.

There was the barest of anguished cries as the living clay creature's face twisted in agony, but it was short lived as the chakra powered blade pierced its breast. The beast seemed to fling its wings backwards in a vain attempt to hover in place before there was a resounding explosion of Naruto's cutting wind natured chakras.

Bits and pieces of the clay falcon's broken for pounded the blond attacker as the man fell from the sky, but fresh velar was already streaming voluminously from his palms. However Naruto had no time to pay further mind to the Shinobi. A second attacker broke through their lines.

This one was a hulking blue humanoid with a bandaged oblong strapped to his back. He looked ridiculous riding his Speeder- like an adult on top of a child's toy.

He was the first to break through their lines however and he came with a swirl of dust that made Naruto choke, and sent him scrambling out of the way. The Shark man's power Speeder was on a collision course with Haku and Zabuza who had been left exposed by Naruto's sudden evasive movements.

The pair of them were ready however. Haku hastily constructed a protective shell of ice in front of them before he rolled away to the side. Given his earlier problems conjuring a simple mist it must have taken a monumental effort.

"Look out!" Naruto called out as he futilely tried to get back into a position to render aid. Hulking blue leaped up and off of his ride before the moment of impact, and only Zabuza was left in its hurtling path… but Naruto should not have underestimated the dark Shinobi.

With only the barest of sidesteps Zabuza was out of the way and he brought his gigantic sword swinging across to slash the Speeder in half as it burst through Haku's ice shield. Then with a springing step Zabuza was lunging forward to engage the enemy.

Haku was already peppering the blue nin – who had landed on his feet – with senbon, and the warrior had been forced to loose his bandaged blade and protect his eyes. Now Naruto watched as Zabuza came crashing into the being. There seemed to be sparks of recognition under his friend's bushy brow.

"Kisame!"

The enemy responded with a mocking laugh which revealed shark-like teeth. Although his eyes were still covered and protected from flying senbon by his weapon's heft Naruto heard the smile in his voice as he spoke.

"Ho Zabuza… Its been a while… Fag," Kisame said. He was already using his greater strength to push Zabuza backwards and Haku abandoned his useless senbon assault – beginning to sprint forward when out of nowhere Lovett entered the fray – landing besides the two with a cascade of crackling Force energy.

Alcatraz's long hair whipped around as he pirouetted with his lit purple double bladed Lightsaber. He forced the shark – like Kisame to disengage and dodge away from his jabs. Naruto could see that – at the least – the three together would be able to hold the behemoth at bay for a while…

Which was a very good thing…

For the other two had finally arrived.

"Karin… you getting all of this? Where's Clay man?" Naruto spoke into his comm. Link as his eyes studied in the budding battles.

Kisame had made his entry with violence, but his companions had calmly and politely parked their vehicles a distance away before approaching serenely on foot. There was another blonde and one with dark hair. The two of them broke out into Shinobi shuffles in response to some un-given signal.

"Clay man made himself some sort of cushion," Karin said. Linked to her Overlord Array she was perceiving the fight on a scale that the rest of them could never comprehend. 'It's some kind of… clay flower," she finished lamely. "He's inside but I can't tell what he's doing," she said.

"Keep an eye-" Naruto began to instruct, but there was sudden motion to his right. Sasuke had burst out of position and was sprinting flat out towards the still somewhat distant enemy.

"Where the fuck d'you think you're going?" Naruto yelled out after him, but he wasn't graced with a response.

Momentarily he forgot the raging battle between Haku, Zabuza, Lovett and Kisame behind him. Momentarily he forgot Hinata and Qeral stance ready by his side, and momentarily he forgot Karin whispering information into his ear.

"It's him isn't it?" Qeral asked her former apprentice and Naruto watched in frustration as the dark haired girl simply nodded.

"We have to go after him," she stated plainly as she and her Mistress took off in huge Force assisted leaps.

For a moment Naruto stood incredulous and alone. The only island of sanity in the midst of all the flowering madness.

"Who's he!" he wailed out the demand as he took off after them.

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><p>Sasuke hadn't been able to believe it at first. He had faced the attack calmly, and he had been about to render aid against the marauding Kisame before Alcatraz preempted him. It was strange but he had almost missed it.<p>

At a distance the dark haired figure was wrapped in a cloak and further obscured by the shifting dust in the atmosphere, but after all these years…

After all of these years how could Sasuke fail to recognize his brother?

In an instant the slate of forgiveness and temperance was wiped clean. The precepts and pillars that the Jedi had built into him crumbled into dust when he witnessed the blood red eyes of his clan's executioner once more. The lessons that he had received on Coruscant seemed millennia away.

Sasuke did not realize that his body was moving and that both of his blades were still lit. Orton had taught him well. Without thinking he conjured green nimbuses of electrical power to tingle through his hands, and he sent licking green vines to wrap themselves around his sabers.

He covered the meters between he and his opponent in a single instant. Sasuke did not even deign to notice the pierced blond who matched his brother stride for stride, and waved a lazy hand to intercept Sasuke's careening form.

Something strangely similar to Force energy took hold of Sasuke and threatened to push him backwards. However the young man's rage was too great. It was too potent. Sasuke burst through the invisible wall with a wordless scream and much flaring of his own power. He felt as if he was leaking energy from his very bones.

The pierced man's face narrowed in consternation as Sasuke forced his way through. Dimly Sasuke was aware that Qeral, Hinata, and Naruto had set out after him, but he only had eyes for his brother. It was as if he was trapped in the hypnotic red glance of a deadly basilisk.

"Good. Very good," Itachi seemed to murmur as he fell back faced with Sasuke's assault. However sound could not come to Sasuke's ears. His blood was a pounding inferno in his head.

"Well done," Itachi said appreciatively as he parried a particularly vicious blow. He wielded a Vibrosword that was embedded with weaves of cortosis and Sasuke caught glimpses of stellar body armor under his brother's black cape.

"Now watch out for the thrust!" Itachi instructed as he came forward, and Sasuke was barely able to get out of the way. Itachi chided him as he advanced – almost as if they were still kids training in their parents' backyard.

"You're better than this," Sasuke's brother said in a disappointed tone. Itachi's placid face suddenly turned harsh and for the moment all Sasuke could do was shield himself with both blades from the relentless barrage. Itachi seemed impervious to the green sparks that struck at his body each and every time their blades clashed.

"Use your anger," his brother's tone was dark and deadly. A tendril of fear wrapped itself around Sasuke's heart. "Don't be used by it," Itachi instructed him further.

All of a sudden his brother was inside his guard. Sasuke reversed his tonfa and tried to stab him through the neck, but with the crook of his elbow Itachi batted the strike away. His Vibrosword clattered sideways into Sasuke's primary weapon exposing his chest. Then the very same hand whose elbow had disengaged Sasuke's secondary weapon twisted into a seal. For a millisecond his brother's palm seemed to glow brilliantly, and then Itachi punched that very same palm into his sternum.

Protected as he was by the finest armor a Jedi Knight could own Sasuke felt a crack of pain and a dull throbbing in his chest as he was flung away by the explosion of heat and chakra.

"Oof! Got ya," strangely someone cushioned his fall. Bleary eyed Sasuke looked up and into Naruto's blonde locks and clear eyes.

"We'll take it from here champ," the boy said, and although there was mockery in his tone there was also respect.

"N-No!" Sasuke struggled to get out of Naruto's grip. He could see Hinata and Qeral clashing with the other blonde. He could hear the buzz of their Lightsabers, and although he tasted iron in his mouth he could still see his brother standing serenely with folded arms only a few meters away. He was watching the other battle. Watching and judging.

"Rest here for a moment," Naruto said. He actually had to use a lot of his strength to restrain Sasuke's still struggling form but he didn't let it show in his voice. Naruto didn't even have eyes for Itachi who was standing still and not offering any immediate threat.

He looked instead to the massive clay flower that had bloomed in the distant desert. His greater disc had since come back to swing into lazy arcs around him, but his Lightsaber was still unlit.

"Karin. Sitrep on the others," he asked - placing one hand over the communications device in his left ear.

"Zabuza's group are holding their own… shit! Eyes on the flower!"

"Yeah I see it," Naruto had already been looking towards the massive clay bloom and he finally released Sasuke. Thankfully the young Jedi Knight was also temporarily rendered still from shock. Ponytail had burst out of his cocoon with a falcon twice the size of its predecessor.

This construction had bandy plates of hardened clay armor across the chest, and ominous looking cannons sprouting from its shoulders.

Naruto whistled appreciatively.

"I want one of those," he said.

"Can you take this seriously?" Sasuke demanded as he struggled back to his feet. He telekinetically summoned his discarded blades.

"We need to kill these guys," he stated – glaring across at the still motionless form of his older brother.

"Now you're talking," Naruto grinned and finally deigned to lay eyes on Itachi. Sasuke felt his rage begin to build again as his brother smiled and lazily slicked back a strand of oily hair. He gestured at the both of them with a come hither motion.

"Don't look into his eyes," Sasuke instructed without explanation. Naruto frowned but immediately adjusted his stance to compensate.

"I'm on your six," he murmured.

The clay Shinobi was rapidly winging his way into the fight. Itachi looked up casually to monitor his approach. He paid no mind to Sasuke's charging form – shielding his eyes from the sun's glare with his left hand.

"This time," Sasuke ground the words out of his bloodied lips as he attacked again.

"This time I'll kill you!" He leaped forward – instinctively subsuming his green lightning into his very body. The energy raced through his synapses as liquid fire doubling his speed and reaction time. Even so the delicate circuitry of his brain began to smolder under the duress.

For the first time concern entered Itachi's look – although Sasuke could not tell if this was concern for his own life, or concern for Sasuke's.

"What are you doing?" Itachi demanded of the snarling grimace assaulting him, but he was pushed back with no response. Never one to pass up an opportunity Naruto waited until Sasuke launched himself into a flying knee before darting out into what should have been a blind spot.

The knee connected and Itachi tumbled away – dirtying his cloak with sand. Frustrated the S rank Shinobi began to struggle out of the material – revealing the dull glint of imported armor.

Sasuke was on his last legs and despite how much he willed it he could not follow up his successful strike. Naruto sent his fighting disc streaking at Itachi at a rapid clip and the Shinobi was forced to parry it away with his Vibrosword as he regained his feet.

The disc was not a normal projectile however and he failed to swat it out of the sky.

Sasuke was prone and clutching his head – although he still struggled to rise. As Naruto rushed past he left his defensive disc to form a buzzing guard around his downed companion. His attacking blade continued to circle and dart angrily at Itachi, and the unrepentant missing-nin was becoming increasingly vexed.

Naruto ignited his pearl-rouge Lightsaber with a fiery crackle – finally bringing it into the fray. He fought with his eyes down – watching Itachi's feet and his shadow – heeding Sasuke's advice to avoid eye contact yet still putting himself at a distinct disadvantage.

Even if he had been able to fight normally Naruto shouldn't have been able to duck and weave as he did against a bearer of the Sharingan. He shouldn't have been able to coordinate strikes between his aerial hornet and molten sword as he did, and yet he did. He was guided by the Force.

Naruto fell deeply into trance. Itachi was as silent as he was. He knew when he faced a deadly opponent, and Naruto lacked the passionate chains that had slowed Sasuke. The two of them battled for their lives.

There was a sudden break in the sword fight. They had been so engrossed in their personal struggle that they had stumbled right in between the storming conflict that had Qeral and Hinata on one side and Mr. Piercing on the other.

Trained warriors looked around in surprise, and yet there was only a slight millisecond of re-orientation before new opponents engaged.

Hinata sprang upon Itachi – launching herself into a preternatural series of Force assisted acrobatics, and her former Mistress shadowed her as if they shared a symbiotic connection. Almost as if they were one organism – two halves of the same coin.

"Who are you?" Qeral demanded as her blade locked Itachi's away from his face. She could not have been expecting an answer though because his exposed features were soon met by Hinata's planted feet.

Naruto would have watched more but he had his own problems to face. Sasuke had managed to clamber to his feet but Ponytail was swooping down at him on his clay apparition. Naruto had to fling his defensive disc telekinetically into its path, and although it did not contain the power of his first throw it ricocheted away off of the falcon's head – forcing it to break off its attack.

Meanwhile Naruto had his own problems to face as he faced up against the pierced man. Gradually it began to dawn on him how similar the man was to a Force user, yet still was truly a Shinobi.

Naruto chambered three kicks at the blonde. High – low- high.

The first two were intercepted as expected but the third caught him on the chin, yet the un-named Shinobi was unfazed. Casually he broke Naruto's links to both of his disc blades with a burst of power and they fell from the sky and clattered into the sands.

The Shinobi sprang backwards and began forming a sequence of seals, but Naruto pursued in an effort to stop him. However he could only arrive in time to clash with the midnight rod the man had fashioned from nothingness.

Naruto grunted in surprise. The rod exerted an attractive or repulsive force that affected his Lightsaber. Thrusts were pulled out of their pitch and slashes were drawn inexorably to fizzle out against the man's blade-form.

"What are you?" Naruto breathed rhetorical as he locked frustrated eyes on the man's purple orbs. He was greeted with a chilling smile as he tried a kick to push them apart but was mirrored with a punch to the body. They both took the blows and staggered backwards.

"The original," came the cryptic reply, and them Mr. Piercing was launching himself into a fresh attack.

Concussive blows tore through the air as his dark weapon changed shape and took on the aspect of a short headed mace. Naruto was forced back by the blows of gravitational power that the weapon emitted, but he quickly threw up a shield of his own turbulent wind natured chakra.

For a moment he was sheltered from the battering forces, but then suddenly the whole battle was turned on its head and the scenery changed.

From the distance where his friends battled against the terrible Kisame came an incongruous and gigantic wave of salt water that towered above them all.

The roaring and rushing waters came smashing down to immerse all of the combatants and almost knocked ponytail's clay falcon from the sky.

Struggling not to breathe in and with eyes closed firmly against the building pressure Naruto clawed for the surface. He heard dull blows and thuds which sent buffeting blasts through the water as ponytail began to cackle madly and his bird released its deadly payload.

"I'm finally at the party!" the mad man said, and as Naruto broke the surface he choked up a spluttering cough.

_Great…_

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><p><strong>AN**

100 k plus words… Thank all of you that have been on this journey with me. Review this chapter in celebration!

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><p><strong>SHGS - Chapter Nineteen (Sneak Peek)<strong>

"If we don't get down there now," Karin said in measured tones. "They're all going to die,"

"But what can we do?" Konohamaru barely kept from wailing. "That fight is beyond us!"

"We can get them out of there. That's what we can do," Sakura bit her trembling lower lip but she matched Karin's determination. "That's why Naruto made us form this fall back position," she said. "He was worried."

"Yes," Karin agreed robotically. She was more or less a chakra fueled super computer when she was linked to her Overlord Array. She no longer seemed to be quite human.

"Our window is slimming," she warned them. "Grab hold of yourself Konohamaru," her voice was stern. Coming out of her helm it was metallic and stern.

The boy gulped but he managed to nod. He adjusted the belt that held his training saber and old fashioned shuriken pouch.

"I'm ready," he said, and all three exited the half buried igloo that shielded them from the battle above.

"Let's go."


End file.
